Notice of Intented prosecution letters.

[meno-porsche]

Stupidly I got flashed on the A303 (Amesbury) in November (80mph in a 70mph) - fair cop gov!!, however I then recieved 4 (FOUR) Notice of Intended Prosecution letters, all stating the same time, date and reference numbers, but different PIN numbers (so I can check the evidence on the internet).

I completed one of the forms and returned it to Wilts Police but since then have heard nothing. Its now coming upto 4 months since the incident and I was wondering whether there was a time limit on whether or not they would prosecute. I do not want to ring Wilts Police, just in case they had forgotten ( I live in hope) or decided to focus on real criminals rather than people overtaking a lorry up a hill at 07.00 in the morning. (not that I'm bitter!!)

Any advice most welcome. Andy

[nick s]

hi mate, they have 6 months from the date of the original NIP to proceed i think.

[meno-porsche]

Hi Nick

Bugger! Bugger! Bugger!. The only upside is that my current 3 points will be off then!

Cheers.

[SS2.]

They have 6 months from the date of the offence to lay an information with the courts. A summons would follow maybe 2-3 weeks after this. Wiltshire are renowned for getting the paperwork filed with the courts at 5 months plus.

However, 80 in a 70 is permissible to be dealt with by Conditional Offer of Fixed Penalty and I would be extremely surprised if it went straight to summons (normally reserved for 96 plus in a 70 limit). Saying that, I would have thought the CoFP would have been received by you before now.. You haven't moved recently, have you ?

I suspect they have either 'forgotten' about you or the CoFP is in the pipeline..

If a CoFP does arrive, check your dates VERY carefully. The CoFP has a 28 day response period during which time proceedings against you cannot be instigated. If the CoFP expiry date is more than 6 months after the offence date, then I would suggest you just ignore the SCP's kind offer of 60 quid plus 3 points and take comfort from the fact that they will be unable to pursue the matter through the courts...

[meno-porsche]

SS2, many thanks for the reply.

So if I have not heard anything by 30th May can I assume the "problem" has gone away?

Also do you think there was any specific reason why Wilts decided to send me 4 NIP, or should I just put that down to a mistake (we all make them!!)


Thanks again Andy.

[SS2.]

meno-porsche said:

So if I have not heard anything by end of May can I assume the "problem" has gone away?

Not necessarily...

I'll assume, for the purposes of responding, that the alleged speeding offence occurred on 30.11.2005..Best not to post the actual date - evil eyes and all that

If the speeding matter was to be taken to court, Wiltshire SCP would have to lay the papers (an information) with the court prior to 30.05.2006. The summons can be served on yourself up to 2-3 years later. If it gets to 6 months plus a few days after the offence and you have heard nothing further, I'd suggest making a call to the Mags court in the area you were pinged and checking whether anything has been filed in your name. By doing that, you can categorically rest easy.

meno-porsche said:

Also do you think there was any specific reason why Wilts decided to send me 4 NIP, or should I just put that down to a mistake (we all make them!!)

Just guessing here, but wasn't this around the time that Wilts' SCP were updating their systems to allow alleged offenders to check their photos on the 'net ?? It wouldn't come as a particular surprise if their procedures went a bit awry amidst the confusion at this time..

Let's just hope this same confusion sees you lost in the system for the next couple of months at least (ie until its too late)...


>> Edited by SS2. on Tuesday 21st March 11:55

[meno-porsche]

Thanks again SS2 - we live in hope.