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#Post#: 19753--------------------------------------------------
Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: nicka
Date: April 15, 2024, 12:40 pm
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I received a 'Notice of Intended Prosecution' for doing 35mph in
a 30 zone.
The letter offers a choice to accept points/fine OR attend a
speed awareness course.
However, you can only attend the course if you respond within 74
days of the date of the offence. Problem is that offence was 3
Jan 2024 but the letter is dated 11 March - already 68 days
later !
It sat (unknowingly to me) in the post pile for couple of days
and, by the time I replied, I missed the window so am now faced
with 3 points and a fine.
Apparently it is law that they can only offer the course within
the time window.
Im kicking myself for not opening my post sooner but surely its
unacceptable it takes them 68 days to send the letter with only
74 to respond ? Has anyone had this before and managed to appeal
? Im not questioning the speeding itself, just not having the
option to attend the course due to their stalling and getting a
fine and points on my unblemished license.
thanks
#Post#: 19754--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: Gilan02
Date: April 15, 2024, 1:20 pm
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Others more knowledgeable will be along but they are not
required to offer you a course. But call them and see if they
will allow you to take a course.
#Post#: 19756--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: DWMB2
Date: April 15, 2024, 2:09 pm
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--- Quote from: nicka link ---
>
> Problem is that offence was 3 Jan 2024 but the letter is dated
11 March - already 68 days later !
>
--- End Quote ---
What is your relationship to the vehicle?
#Post#: 19757--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: NewJudge
Date: April 15, 2024, 2:11 pm
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I assume you are not the vehicle's Registered Keeper and that
other people had to be contacted before your name as the driver
was provided. hence the delay.
It's not "the law" that a course can only be offered within that
time. Courses have no basis in law and are not covered by any
legislation. They are offered entirely at the discretion of the
police and they can make their own requirements. The reason for
the cut off is to ensure there is time for the driver to take
the course before the six month time limit to begin a
prosecution is up.
Apart from a phone call to ask if an exception can be made,
there's nothing to be done about this, I'm afraid.
#Post#: 19766--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: slapdash
Date: April 16, 2024, 1:34 am
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74 days seems a strange number. Was it specifically mentioned on
the notice you received or is it something you have calculated.
In any event different forces have different limits, some
publish their policy on their website.
You say you have received 3 pts and a fine. How? (Presumably you
have now received a fixed penalty offer).
The OP never said that. They said that they are "now faced with
3 points and a fine." - [mod]
The normal process would be:-
You receive a nip/s172 and respond with the drivers details
(this being the only option)
The next step would then normally be to receive a conditional
offer of fixed penalty which is where a course offer (if any)
would be made.
Avon and Somerset (and possibly others) combine the 2 steps
above with a single notice also offering fixed penalty or course
(as appropriate).
#Post#: 19778--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: nicka
Date: April 16, 2024, 4:23 am
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--- Quote from: DWMB2 link ---
>
> [quote author=nicka link=topic=1662.msg19753#msg19753
date=1713202821]
> Problem is that offence was 3 Jan 2024 but the letter is dated
11 March - already 68 days later !
>
--- End Quote ---
What is your relationship to the vehicle?
[/quote]
its leased via my employer - you might be on to something here
if they went first to the lease company
#Post#: 19779--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: DWMB2
Date: April 16, 2024, 4:32 am
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Thought that might be the case - the first NIP will have gone to
whoever is the Registered Keeper, with each party receiving an
NIP having 28 days to respond, it's easy to see how it could
take 60+ days to reach you. The 'chain' of letters could look
something like this:
NIP to car hire firm --> They name your employer --> NIP to
employer --> They name you --> NIP to you
The chain might be even longer than this, the hire company your
employer use may not be the registered keeper themsevles.
#Post#: 19780--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: NewJudge
Date: April 16, 2024, 5:44 am
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--- Quote from: nicka link ---
>
> its leased via my employer - you might be on to something here
if they went first to the lease company
>
--- End Quote ---
There's nothing to exploit from this discovery. It was fairly
clear from the dates you mentioned that the first NIP (the only
one required by law and so the only one subject to a time limit)
must almost certainly have gone elsewhere. The accompanying
"request for driver's details" is not subject to any time limit
and you must respond to it regardless of any issues you might
have with the offer of a course. Having said that, 74 days (i.e.
about two and a half months) seems quite a short cut off time
for a course to be offered. Although I don't know for certain, I
was under the impression that most forces allowed at least three
months before a course would no longer be an option. I think it
may be worth a call to the ticket office to confirm.
#Post#: 19785--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: ManxTom
Date: April 16, 2024, 8:07 am
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--- Quote from: nicka link ---
>
>
> ... However, you can only attend the course if you respond
within 74 days of the date of the offence. Problem is that
offence was 3 Jan 2024 but the letter is dated 11 March -
already 68 days later !...
>
> thanks
>
--- End Quote ---
As others have asked, where do you get 74 days from?
I did a course last October and in my area you have to have
booked, paid for, and successfully completed a course within
four months of the offence date. Different police forces may
have different cut-off dates but 74 days isn't even three months
after 03 January (which would be 90 or 91 days). 74 days isn't
a number of weeks either.
If it's possible that you've got this wrong you need to contact
the police for confirmation ASAP as to whether you may still be
eligible for a course. If it does happen also to be four months
in your area, you only have a couple of weeks left to complete
the course.
I was lucky because I was able to book, pay for and complete a
course in just over a couple of weeks* after a coure was
offered. But in some parts of the country I believe there's a
pretty long waiting list.
You need to act ASAP.
*In fact I could have done a course within 5 days of one being
offered if I hadn.t been otherwise occupied that day. Only
online course were on offer when I booked
#Post#: 19787--------------------------------------------------
Re: Speeding 35 in a 30 - missed time window to attend speed
awareness due to police delay
DIR By: BertB
Date: April 16, 2024, 8:58 am
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--- Quote from: slapdash link ---
>
> You say you have received 3 pts and a fine. How? (Presumably
you have now received a fixed penalty offer).
>
--- End Quote ---
Although we like everything to be spelt out clear as day, but I
think the inference here is that a COFP has been received and
the OP is annoyed that it wasn't a course offer due to the time
taken to process.
--- Quote ---
> by the time I replied, I missed the window so am now faced
with 3 points and a fine
--- End Quote ---
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