Free Traffic Legal Advice

Could really do with some advice

While returning from a stressful hospital visit to my mother i was caught speeding doing 46 in a 40 mph limit, i should have known better i knew the camera was there but visit was very stressful and i switched off, totally my fault, the date of the speeding was 13/11/2023

By the time i received the letter i accepted my indiscretion and filled in all the required details on the 20/11/2023 having a clean license hoping to the speed awareness course.

With my mothers ongoing illness i left it at that and waited on reply but i did not receive anything until 01/05/2024 when i received a return to sender letter with the NIP opened inside and a sticker ticked refused,

02/05/2024 i then received a Single notice procedure in the post for the speeding and failure to provide information

i need to reply asap i not sent back, i have 21 days and can plead online but my question is what do i do /fill in on the form, i have not had this before

I really do not feel as if i have done anything wrong

I have checked everything on form and the address and sent well within timescale now i face filling a form in of which i have no idea and do not now what to please either,

Will have to fill in the online form soon or will pass deadline

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Yes it came back opened looks like by a machine the judging by the cut on the envelope, it also had the print over the stamp to show it's been through the Post offices system there was a sticker on the envelope with a tick next to the refused selection so to me that means the safety camera dept received it but refused? Plus it was opened i checked the details and the address and it was all correct.

Was it sent normal post or some form of signed for/tracked/special delivery.

It is possible the opening was done by the royal mail in order to ascertain to whom it should be returned. Though it does seem to have taken a long time to come back.

Hi Apologies  i'm just desprate for help, it's just so scary the threat of 9 points for something i feel i have provide all the information i can on, the sticker id from the Royal mail saying refused but dated 12.12.23 with initials on but i did not receive it until beginning of May, the outer envelope that the Post Office returned it in has my address and a code on 3-048 23104224? if that means anything. i'm sorry this is making me really anxious as i have to respond but don't know what to do

Also strangely on SJPN notice it mentions that all correspondance delivered to the safety camera unit by the royal mail is handed in a post bag directly to a member of staff and mail is opened at a work station and envelopes opened using an electronic opener the contents removed and collated

Unless the particular legislation indicates a contrary intention, the Interpretation Act means that the requirement is for the response to be delivered to the appropriate address. Not merely sent, and most definitely not received by the police.

AFAIK there is no specific case law on whether the Interpretation Act applies to an s. 172 response, but there is case law that provides that it does apply to the NIP sent by the police.

The issue would seem to be whether or not the response was delivered to the address on the notice, or more particularly whether this can be proven on the balance of probabilities by the OP.

The OP has very briefly described a sticker placed on the envelope by the post office. He can only guess at what it means, and we can potentially make a less well informed guess based on his description. If only there were some body that would know what the sticker actually means and why the post office stuck it on the envelope and why the letter was returned to the OP...

OP, you said "i was caught speeding". Was this by a camera, or were you stopped by a police officer?

Aww No i didn't even realise with all that's going on with my mother i never send letters anymore that was the first and last i've sent in years. They say on the SJPN they sent a reminder but i never received that plus why did it take so long to send back. Could you please advise what my best course of action will now be please i really cannot afford the costs or all the points on my licence. i have to fill in the SJPN by the deadline tomorrow   

You have shown us 2 envelopes. One is addressed by hand to the SCU, has a postage stamp, has been franked and has a sticker with returned ticked on it.
The other envelope has first class printed on the top right corner and seemingly has no address on it.

The first envelope seems quite self explanatory, beyond the questions of how/why it was refused and its resultant status in law (whether as a matter of law it was served or not served).

The second envelope, not so much.

That postage stamp wasn't valid when it was posted(?).  See @RichardW's post.