Hi there,
Tl;Dr: I'm contemplating pleading guilty or not guilty to a speeding offence, to try ang have a s172 charge dropped that I technically did, but was down to pure human error. Having some anxiety about how exactly to do this while giving the right impression and, unsure of what wording to use to put forward the offer.
----------------
I've received an SJPN with two charges:
- Charge 1 against s172(3) for failure to give information relating to the identification of the driver / rider of a vehicle when required;
- and Charge 2 against s81(1) and s89(1) for exceeding 30 mph on restricted road in England - automatic camera device (I was doing 35, mistakenly thought it was 40 and saw the speed limit sign just before I rounded a bend to a speed camera).
I'm contemplating the "stock response" which is to plead NG to both and offer the deal, however I'm worried about what to write in the mitigation, and I'm also worried that I've misunderstood and don't want to be perceived to be initially saying "not guilty" to something that I later plead "guilty" to. Is this just the way the system works, and I won't be coming across as trying to deny the speeding?
I have three points on my license already (due to expire in may this year), so being charged with both offences will result in a driving ban for me. My job involves a lot of driving and, while I may not lose it, I'd still rather avoid both the ban and the penalty code.
For context:
The speeding offence happened in July, in my employer's vehicle, and I was handed the letter that they received. I logged into an online portal on behalf of my employer (which I'm now aware is not the way it should have been handled) and entered my own personal details as the driver.
I've been expecting to hear more ever since, and don't remember if I received anything. I initially didn't remember receiving an NIP, but do remember logging back into the portal at a later date and being met with an error message saying that, because I'd already provided information in that portal, I couldn't provide any more - and thought done and dusted I'll wait for a COFP. I also vaguely remember having a letter to post around that time, which would have worked out, however I realise that vague memory - or lack thereof - cannot serve as solid evidence. I did contact the portal service in the first instance to get help with using it, which I'm planning to submit as evidence that I did try and do the right thing, and at no point tried to hide my admission, and have just failed to do this step by pure human error.
I received the SJPN in December, and spoke to a solicitor almost immediately, who claimed they'd be able to make it all go away with nothing worse than a speed awareness course, and who I later decided wouldn't be worth the £3000 they were trying to charge me (which I really can't afford).
The due date to plea is 1st Jan (I've only just found this forum) so I'll be drafting a response today for either option, but would feel much better with some reassurance that I'm not going to be seen as someone just playing the system, or if I am, that that's just how things are done anyway.
Also if anybody could suggest any wording to put into the mitigation of a not guilty plea on the speeding, that would be grand, as I really want to say the right thing but I also don't want to come accross as a Lionel Hutz.
Sorry if that's a big ramble - I wanted to give as much information as possible but don't know exactly what's relevant or not.
