Brake: Speeding penalties to double

The Department for Transport is to publish a consultation before Christmas on doubling the number of points given to speeding drivers, according to a report in The Times today. Under the proposals drivers caught doing 45mph or more in a 30mph limit are likely to face six points and a £100 fine, up from the current three points and £60 fine.

The Government is also reconsidering its earlier proposal to lower the number of points for drivers caught just over the limit. Hitting a pedestrian at 35mph is twice as likely to kill them as hitting them at 30mph, a message given by Department for Transport road safety ads. To lower points for drivers clearly endangering vulnerable road users would undermine this message and fly in the face of common sense.

Brake welcomes the Department for Transport’s proposals, but is calling for tougher charges, such as ‘careless’ or ‘dangerous’ driving, to be brought against drivers who deliberately take the risk of travelling at speeds which endanger lives.

The proposed fine of £100 for a higher level speeding offence is low compared to fines for relatively minor offences, such as dropping litter, which are often much higher. Brake is urging the Government to set this fixed penalty fine at a minimum of £1,000, to provide a real deterrent to speeding.

Cathy Keeler, Head of Campaigns at Brake says: “Brake welcomes the steps by Government towards treating speeding as the life-threatening crime it is by increasing penalties. However, fixed penalty points and fines must not be brought as an alternative to more serious charges when lives are at risk. Fines must act as a deterrent to protect vulnerable road users. A £100 fine still belittles the severity of a crime which can rob someone of their life in seconds.”