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#Post#: 111172--------------------------------------------------
35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: estevenin
Date: February 25, 2026, 6:39 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Hi all,
Got some questions regarding a live speeding fine I'm dealing
with. First, the timeline :
07/09/2025, the camera flashes my car at 35MPH instead of 30MPH,
thinking Bath road was at 40MPH
11/09/2025, they send the NIP
10/10/2025, I'v been trying to respond to the NIP online, but
their website kept on returning an error for days "Please accept
our apologies that the Portal is not currently available, work
is ongoing to restore this at the earliest opportunity"
11/10/2025, I then respond by post and are forced to pay for a
stamp (bouh), and explain also why I'm 1 day late to send the
NIP's response
14/01/2026, After not hearing anything for months, I receive an
email from the MET Police :
--- Quote ---
> Dear Driver / Rider
>
> We are in receipt of your admission and you have provided us
with your email address.
>
> The MET is implementing a new business process where
communications and documentation are sent digitally rather than
via Royal Mail.
>
> If you wish to opt out of digital service please respond to
this email within 48 hours.
>
> If no response is received further communications and
documentation may be sent to you digitally via this email
address you previously supplied.
>
> Please therefore ensure that you regularly check your spam
folder for any communications from us.
>
> Thank you
--- End Quote ---
15/01/2026, I respond that I wish to continue by post, hoping
that'll make me win some time
16/01/2026, they confirm that my choice has been recorded
26/02/2026 (today), I receive the Single Justice Procedure
Notice (8 days short from the 6 months period!). However the
notice seems to be dated from 11/02/2026, so it has been
recorded within 5 months and a week. Based on that, they are
then on time. not sure why I received it so late… But that means
I only have a few days left to respond.
Here's the SJPN just for the record :
HTML https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/cwvo1viqjksfewi5khxxn/SJP-blank-printed.pdf?rlkey=p89kzrzqgtanfyzejvf9knd7l&dl=0
Here's the image evidence :
HTML https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pk840exy81289fmhxh1o7/Capture-d-cran-2026-02-25-235829.png?rlkey=jxc6eae5a6x7vtbvaa364s4gi&dl=0
[img]
HTML https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/pk840exy81289fmhxh1o7/Capture-d-cran-2026-02-25-235829.png?rlkey=jxc6eae5a6x7vtbvaa364s4gi&dl=0[/img]
Everything seems to be correct in the SJPN, except for a small
twist, so here are my questions :
1. In the witness statement, one particular paragraph caught my
attention :
--- Quote ---
> A Conditional offer of Fixed Penalty was sent to *** on
23/10/2025.
>
> The driver/ rider failed to satisfy the requirements of the
Fixed Penalty, by not paying the Fixed Penalty and failing to
provide their licence details for electronic endorsement.
>
> The driver/ rider did not satisfy the requirements of the
Fixed Penalty offer within the specified timeframe. As a result,
the offer of a Fixed Penalty has been withdrawn.
>
> The matter was therefore referred to the Prosecution Team for
a Single Justice Notice to be issued ..
--- End Quote ---
No, a Conditional offer or Fixed Penalty was not sent. In fact,
the (accidental I suppose) acknowledgement of receipt from the
met police of my NIP response by mail on the 14/01/2026, means
that they just started looking up at my case, back in January. I
reckon they were doing some tweakings in their system, looking
to digitalize it, and they got caught in some kind of backlog or
something.
Is that a ground for (a successful) appeal ? My current research
shows that I could only plead guilty and ask for the Conditional
Offer to be applied, following a failure of the administration
to send it.
2. I was traveling near that bus. We are nearly at the same
level, but I'm still a bit behind. I assume that would not be a
successful reason for appeal (that the camera could have caught
the bus given how close we were) ?
3. I looked up the signs on the road, unfortunately for me,
there are 2 signs on the left hand sign, which I would have
missed traveling near that bus, however there is another one on
the right hand sign, about 30 seconds before, very small and
unlit, but nevertheless, it's there. Besides, a road without any
specified speed limit and with lamp posts, is meant to be 30MPH
by default. So I'm assuming a judge would not take that, but I
still ask... would the lack of good visible sign and considering
the bus on the left blocking the view, be a good ground for
appeal or is that a blunder ?
4. I am a private hire driver. This will bring me up to 9
points. I should not loose my PHV licence (I might, but I think
they are more relaxed now with all those 20MPH roads nowadays.
Fingers crossed), however if it does (or even if it doesn't, one
more strike and I'm out) this will put me in a very tough spot,
with a risk of loosing my work.
Could I claim for the points not to be applied ? Or would that
only be in case of a 4th and final fine ?
Thank you all for taking the time of looking up at my case.
#Post#: 111179--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: andy_foster
Date: February 25, 2026, 11:54 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: estevenin link ---
>
> No, a Conditional offer or Fixed Penalty was not sent.
--- End Quote ---
How can you know whether a COFP was sent?
--- Quote ---
> Is that a ground for (a successful) appeal ? My current
research shows that I could only plead guilty and ask for the
Conditional Offer to be applied, following a failure of the
administration to send it.
--- End Quote ---
Your current research is correct.
For the sake of completeness, DPP v Holden is the authority that
a defect in a COFP does not prevent court proceedings being
instigated after the end of the 28 day suspended enforcement
period.
--- Quote ---
> 2. I was traveling near that bus. We are nearly at the same
level, but I'm still a bit behind. I assume that would not be a
successful reason for appeal (that the camera could have caught
the bus given how close we were) ?
--- End Quote ---
What you have shown us are not the evidential photos, but
presumably cropped versions of the evidential photos - with the
data block removed for some unspecified reason. However, if
having more than one vehicle in the image negated the evidence,
installing the cameras in London would seem to be somewhat
futile.
--- Quote ---
> 3. I looked up the signs on the road, unfortunately for me,
there are 2 signs on the left hand sign, which I would have
missed traveling near that bus, however there is another one on
the right hand sign, about 30 seconds before, very small and
unlit, but nevertheless, it's there. Besides, a road without any
specified speed limit and with lamp posts, is meant to be 30MPH
by default. So I'm assuming a judge would not take that, but I
still ask... would the lack of good visible sign and considering
the bus on the left blocking the view, be a good ground for
appeal or is that a blunder ?
--- End Quote ---
Blunder
--- Quote ---
> 4. I am a private hire driver. This will bring me up to 9
points. I should not loose my PHV licence (I might, but I think
they are more relaxed now with all those 20MPH roads nowadays.
Fingers crossed), however if it does (or even if it doesn't, one
more strike and I'm out) this will put me in a very tough spot,
with a risk of loosing my work.
>
> Could I claim for the points not to be applied ? Or would that
only be in case of a 4th and final fine ?
--- End Quote ---
No, and your second question begs the question as to whether the
obligation to endorse somehow did not apply when it would result
in totting.
Upon conviction, the court is required by law to order your
licence to be endorsed (either with points or a ban) unless it
finds that there are special reasons not to endorse. Such
reasons would have to be compelling mitigation regarding the
commission of the offence (e.g.; speeding because of a genuine
emergency), rather than the effect of the punishment. This
applies regardless of how many points you currently have on your
licence.
The difference as regards totting up is that if the points take
your total to 12 or more relevant points, the court are also
required by law to ban you for 6 months unless you can show that
such a ban would cause exceptional hardship (to you or to
others). This has no bearing on how you get to the 12 points
(other than guidance to issue points rather than issuing a ban
for an offence if the points would trigger totting up.
You are grasping at straws. You appear to recognise this. There
is nothing inherently wrong with grasping at straws - it is
generally better to ask a stupid question than to stupidly not
ask a question that you should have asked - although much of
this is covered in the "READ THIS FIRST" post cunningly hidden
at the top of this forum.
#Post#: 111293--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: estevenin
Date: February 26, 2026, 5:06 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Thank you for the reply
--- Quote ---
> How can you know whether a COFP was sent?
--- End Quote ---
If on January the MET Police just about confirm that they have
received my NIP's response, it means they would not have started
to deal with it before, so the probabilities that they sent
anything in October (or could have been lost in administrative
mayhem due to them updating their system), is high.
--- Quote ---
> What you have shown us are not the evidential photos, but
presumably cropped versions of the evidential photos - with the
data block removed for some unspecified reason.
--- End Quote ---
The pictures are not cropped, that's all I have from the SJPN on
page 20. I did forget to include the data block for some reason,
here's the full page :
HTML https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/nslfswzt5zrew9kxr8ooc/SJP-blank-printed_Page_20.jpg?rlkey=oxqg63r467x5oq0csvd7vn7os&dl=0
--- Quote ---
> unless you can show that such a ban would cause exceptional
hardship
--- End Quote ---
Understood, so exceptional hardship could only be pleaded in
case it would get to 12 points. I'll keep that for the next one
if and when it comes. I'm assuming that even with 9 points, I
could still get a speed awareness course if the last one was
more than 3 years ago, so that could still give me one more if
I'm still at 9 points when and if it happens.
--- Quote ---
> cunningly hidden at the top of this forum.
--- End Quote ---
I did find it and had a read, was useful to respond for other
questions I had.
In Conclusion : The best (and only) course of action is to plead
guilty, and ask for the the judge to sentence the equivalent of
the conditional offer. I have written the response (no need to
read it I think it's pretty straightforward), just putting this
down here for the sake of any future visitor seeking help on a
similar matter :
--- Quote ---
> I am pleading guilty to the offence of speeding (35mph in a
30mph zone). I accept full responsibility for the error.
However, I respectfully request that the Court considers
sentencing me in line with the 'Fixed Penalty Equivalent'
principle (specifically £100 and 3 penalty points), as per the
Sentencing Council’s guidelines for cases where a Conditional
Offer was not received due to administrative reasons.
>
> I would like the Court to consider the following timeline,
which demonstrates that I have acted in good faith but was
denied the opportunity to resolve this without court
proceedings:
>
> 1. NIP Response: I attempted to respond to the NIP online up
until 10/10/2025, but the Metropolitan Police portal was
non-functional (recorded by a system error message).
Consequently, I responded by post on the same day, including a
letter explaining the technical delay.
>
> 2. Missing Conditional Offer: The witness statement claims a
Conditional Offer was sent on 23/10/2025. I state categorically
that no such offer was received at my address, which is the
correct address of service.
>
> 3. Contradictory Correspondence: On 14/01/2026, I received an
email from the Metropolitan Police (Laura Drury) stating they
were in 'receipt of my admission' (which is 3 months after it
was sent), and that they were only then 'implementing a new
business process' for digital documentation and asking me to
opt-in or out of digital service.
>
> 4. Action Taken: I responded immediately on 15/01/2026,
requesting to continue via post. The police confirmed receipt of
this preference on 16/01/2026.
>
> It is my submission that if the police were just dealing with
my NIP's response and still establishing my communication
preferences in mid-January 2026, it is highly likely that the
Conditional Offer supposedly sent in October 2025 was never
successfully served or was caught in an administrative backlog.
>
> As a professional Private Hire (PHV) driver, I am acutely
aware of the importance of maintaining a clean driving record
for my livelihood. This conviction will bring my total to 9
penalty points. Given the high stakes involved for my career, I
would have had every incentive to accept and pay a £100
Conditional Offer immediately to resolve the matter. I would
never have ignored such an offer and allowed it to escalate to
court proceedings voluntarily.
>
> In light of the above, and given that my speed (35mph) falls
well within the threshold for a Fixed Penalty, I request that
the fine be limited to £100 and that no victim surcharge or
court costs be awarded, or that they be kept to a minimum, to
reflect the position I would have been in had the offer reached
me.
>
> Exhibit A: Screenshot of the Met Police website error.
> Exhibit B: Photo of the stamp/proof of postage.
> Exhibit C: The email from Laura Drury.
--- End Quote ---
Will send that on tuesday the 3rd, if no issue with the website!
#Post#: 111306--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: NewJudge
Date: February 27, 2026, 3:17 am
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote ---
> As a professional Private Hire (PHV) driver, I am acutely
aware of the importance of maintaining a clean driving record
for my livelihood.
--- End Quote ---
You may be. However:
--- Quote ---
> This conviction will bring my total to 9 penalty points.
--- End Quote ---
The court may ask itself how acute your awareness really is.
Bin everything after the first paragraph. Amend that to explain
that, although a COFP was sent, it was not received and ask the
court to kindly consider sentencing you at a level equivalent to
the FP.
#Post#: 111887--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: estevenin
Date: March 3, 2026, 7:49 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Thank you all for the advice, it's been sent.
#Post#: 112863--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: estevenin
Date: March 11, 2026, 11:03 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Hi all, got the result :
- 3 points
- 99GBP fine
- 230GBP cost
- 40GBP victim surcharge
Total : 269GBP
So as I understand it, I am ordered to pay 269GBP instead of the
100GBP I should normally be paying ? Is that process even legal
? If it is, then technically the Met Police doesn't have to send
any conditional offer even to motorists when they exceed the
speed limits, and they could just charge 2.5x what they would
charge normally ?
An organized racket scheme ?
#Post#: 112865--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: NewJudge
Date: March 11, 2026, 11:15 am
---------------------------------------------------------
Did you mention the fact that you did not receive the Fixed
Penalty offer when you responded to your SJPN?
--- Quote ---
> If it is, then technically the Met Police doesn't have to send
any conditional offer even to motorists when they exceed the
speed limits,…
--- End Quote ---
The police have no obligation to offer a fixed penalty at all.
It is entirely at their discretion. They could, if they wanted
to, simply proceed to prosecute every alleged offender.
--- Quote ---
> ….and they could just charge 2.5x what they would charge
normally ?
--- End Quote ---
The police do not charge you anything. They get no revenue from
either fixed penalties or court fines. The court decides what
the penalty will be.
That said, £240 costs is a bit steep. It’s normally around £100
(assuming you entered a guilty plea).Have you asked the court
why this is?
--- Quote ---
> An organized racket scheme ?
--- End Quote ---
No, just the law.
#Post#: 112906--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: Southpaw82
Date: March 11, 2026, 3:35 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
I’m not sure the costs/fine are the right way round.
#Post#: 112907--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: NewJudge
Date: March 11, 2026, 3:46 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
I wondered that, sp. But the VS amount fits the fine.
#Post#: 112918--------------------------------------------------
Re: 35MPH in a 30MPH section of Bath Road, London. SJPN received
(with a twist ?)
DIR By: andy_foster
Date: March 11, 2026, 4:42 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
We've heard of cases where the fine has been reduced to account
for the costs - e.g. £35 fine and £65 costs - but this seems to
be the other way around - fine at FP level (although why £99
instead of £100) and costs increased to stop the OP getting off
too lightly.
However, without knowing whether the OP pled guilty, or what
income (if any) he disclosed, this is getting close to the level
of pointless speculation I have been known to criticise others
for.
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