Two strikes and you’re out – that was the message from the British government after it announced a shake up of road safety laws that would see penalties for some speeding offences doubled.
The new penalties included 6 points on your licence for exceeding the speed limit by 15mph in a 30mph area or by 25mph on a motorway. New long range speed cameras are being installed on roads around the country to monitor average speeds of vehicles over long stretches of the busiest roads, and at accident hot spots.
Road Safety Minister Jim Fitzpatrick spoke to journalists about the penalties, saying: “In cases of extreme speeding only, there is a proposal to increase the penalty to six points to ensure the punishment corresponds better to the offence committed.” The proposals met with a mixed reaction from road safety experts, who argued that whilst tougher penalties for speeding in built up areas was a positive step, it was likely to have little impact on road safety on Britain’s motorways, which only account for 5% of road accident fatalities.
Figures released by the government just before the announcement on speeding penalties show that whilst around 1 in 7 fatal accidents are caused by speeding motorists, the main causes of road accidents were failing to look properly, errors of judgement or simply careless driving.
Camps Solicitors welcome all moves to reduce deaths on Britain’s roads. As a law firm of No Win No Fee car accident solicitors, we see the after effects of serious road traffic accidents on a daily basis, and the impact of those accidents on the victims and their families. If you have been the victim of a road traffic accident within the last three years and you are interested in making a compensation claim, please call Camps Solicitors now on Freephone.
Call 0800 092 8586
Speak to one of our claims advisors about your claim.
Unlikely to happen for a while yet – the coalition have bigger fish to fry!