One in eight speeding tickets are torn up

The RAC Foundation said the hundreds of thousands of fines cancelled each year across England and Wales are evidence that the system for catching and prosecuting speeding motorists is not working.The charity’s analysis of Home Office data shows that Lancashire Constabulary recorded 55,154 speeding offences in 2020-21.Of these, 14,439 (26%) were dealt with by fixed penalty notices and 22,865 (41%) by speeding awareness courses, while 10,752 (19%) resulted in someone being taken to court.

A further 6,704 (12%) were dismissed – up from 9% the year before.Among the reasons why offences could be cancelled are faulty or incorrectly calibrated speed cameras, a lack of resources to bring cases to court, or cloned vehicles carrying a false number plate, according to the RAC Foundation.Across England and Wales, 17% of all speeding offences were cancelled last year – an increase from 13% in 2019-20.