KNOW YOUR RIGHTS
depending on the speed. It would also be too late to revert back to a speed awareness course at this point.
So again, it is very sensible to have a system in place for dealing with your post whilst you’re away so that you can consider any offer that comes through.
Q Q A
I think I’ve been caught speeding and am expecting a letter, but I’m going abroad for a few months. What happens if I miss the letter
whilst I’m away?
If you have been recorded speeding by a camera, the police will write to the registered keeper at their last known address within 14
days, asking them to nominate the driver.
You have 28 days to respond. If you fail to nominate the driver within 28 days from the date of that letter, you would be prosecuted for failing to provide driver information, an offence which carries 6 penalty points and up to a £1000 fine, together with costs and surcharges on top.
So it’s very sensible to have a system in place for dealing with your post whilst you are away. Perhaps have a neighbour or a relative visit your house every week or two and open the post, so that you can respond to any letters.
If you are here to nominate the driver, but you miss the next letter, you may still end up in court.
Once the driver has been nominated, as long as the speed is within the threshold, you should be offered either a fixed penalty of 3 points and a £100 fine, or a speed awareness course if you haven’t done one within the last 3 years. However again you would only have 28 days to accept that, so if you’re away and you miss the offer, the case will proceed to court, where you could receive up to 6 penalty points and much higher fines,
PHTM JUNE 2025 A
I read one of your articles saying that it’s an offence to be drunk whilst I’m in my car, even if I’m not driving it. I own a camper van and
when I’m on holiday, I often have a few beers before sleeping in the back. Does that mean I’m committing an offence?
Yes, you would be committing an offence. It is an offence simply to be in charge of your
car whilst you are drunk. Being in charge simply means that you haven’t relinquished charge, so if you are sleeping in the back of a camper van, then you would almost certainly be deemed to be ‘in charge’.
If you were in a holiday park, there is a possibility of defending the case on the basis that you were parked on private land, but if the holiday park is open to members of the public that is unlikely to be successful.
It is likely you would be charged and taken to court, where you could receive 10 points or up to a six month disqualification, or even longer depending on the reading.
It is a defence to be ‘in charge’ of a vehicle if you could show that there was no likelihood of you driving the camper van whilst you were above the limit. The burden would be on you to go to court to prove that you weren’t going to drive the camper van until the alcohol level in your body had dropped below the limit.
I would strongly suggest getting legal representation to help you defend the case at court.
It seems an incredibly harsh law, but we have seen cases on exactly this basis in the past.
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