Free Traffic Legal Advice
Live cases legal advice => Speeding and other criminal offences => Topic started by: fezster on May 30, 2026, 11:42:36 am
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Thanks all.
I did already go ahead and submit the online form and seems the advice is there is not much to fight here. Extremely frustrating as I remember being very careful driving in the 20 zones that day, but obviously not careful enough!
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Whilst the requirement to serve a NIP within the 14 days is mandatory, the required details are "merely directory" - if you know which incident the NIP refers to (or if the correct time would not have made any difference), then the NIP is not invalidated for the purposes of s. 1 Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988.
Logically, it seems that the NIP and the paper s. 172 are likely to be correct and the online time is wrong.
*If* the paper NIP has the wrong time, then arguably there might be a get out of jail free on the basis that presumably nobody was driving that vehicle at that location at the time specified, and you are not required to second guess what the police actually should have asked.
If the time on the paper NIP is correct, then as the online form is a mere convenience, you need to decide how bothered you are by the incorrect time. Do you want to eat today, or buy a stamp and use the paper form.
Arguably, using the online form (if that has the wrong time) would seem to provide the prosecution with evidence that you were driving at time Y when they have evidence of the offence being committed at time X, so that should not be sufficient to convict you of the speeding offence - although raising that as a defence would seem to leave you open to a charge under s.5 of the Perjury Act 1911 (assuming that you weren't driving that vehicle at that location at both times).
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@fezster - "... Should I still submit this, even though it is incorrect?"
Which time do you think is incorrect? The one on the NIP or the one on the submission form?
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Almost certainly the camera is showing a GMT time. Wouldn’t want to fight it on that basis.
Naming the driver needs to happen regardless.
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I've received an NIP as the owner of the vehicle in question from the Met Police as follows:
Offence: Exceed a 20 MPH speed limit in contravention of a Local Traffic Order - Mobile Camera device
Date and time: 24/05/2026 18:18 hours
Location: A205 South Circular Road between junction A23 Brixton Hill and junction New Park Road, SW2
Recorded Speed: 25mph
I have gone online to the Star Portal to fill in details of the driver and on the submission page, the date/time is incorrect by an hour:
Summary of Alleged Offence
Notice number:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
VRM:
xxx
Offence:
Exceed a 20 MPH speed limit in contravention of a Local Traffic Order - Mobile Camera device
Offence date/time:
24 May 2026 19:18
Location:
A205 South Circular Road between junction A23 Brixton Hill and junction New Park Road, SW2
Should I still submit this, even though it is incorrect?
And is there any plausible defence here?