subject: Responding To A Notice Of Intended Prosecution For A Motoring Offence [print this page] If a police officer stops a person for committing a motoring offence, they will almost always notify the person at that time of their intention to prosecute, or at least they should for most offences! However, for certain offences that have been caught on camera or witnessed after the fact, such as speeding (caught on camera), driving through a red light (again caught on camera), etc., the police are forced to notify the suspected person, of their intended prosecution, by other means. This typically takes the form of a notice of intended prosecution' (NIP for short), usually delivered by first class post to the address of the registered keeper of the vehicle. If you've received such a notice, it's important to know what your options are and what procedures you must follow in order to comply with the law.
The first step you should take is to determine whether your NIP is in fact valid. By law, the police must send a NIP to the address of the registered keeper within 14 days of the alleged offence. If the NIP is sent outside of this 14 days, then the prosecution is invalid and the case can go no further. In determining whether your NIP is invalid, you must check the issue date on the notice against the date of the alleged offence. It is this date, rather than the date on which you received the letter, that is important. It's also important to note that the police only have to prove that they sent the letter, not that you received it!
You may find that your NIP contains incorrect information about the vehicle that was being driven or the specific nature of the offence. This does not mean that the notice is invalid and, as long as you can identify the incident in question from the details provided, then you will still be obligated to reply to the NIP. If, however, you are unable to identify the alleged offence from an inaccurate NIP, you should return the notice asking for clarification. If your NIP does contain major inaccuracies, it may be worth taking the advice of a barrister or solicitor speeding specialist about whether it can be challenged.
If the NIP is valid, you will have to reply within 28 days or face the prospect of a further prosecution for withholding requested information. Your reply must identify the driver at the time of the offence. If this was you, then this must be stated and should not be withheld. However, if you cannot be sure who was driving at the time of the offence, due to (perhaps) the car being driven by multiple persons on the day in question, then again you would be wise to quickly seek legal advice from a solicitor or barrister speeding specialist.
Such situations are complex from a legal standpoint, so you may want to take the advice of a barrister or solicitor with expertise in motoring offences. They can provide detailed advice on the appropriate course of action and help you to deal with the prosecution in as effective a way as possible.
by: Julian Harris
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