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NEWS IN DETAIL:
24/09/07 - Penalty Increase For Failing To Provide Driver Details

Monday 24th September 07, 5:25pm

The offence of failing to furnish information pursuant to s.172 of the Road Traffic Act 1998 will attract increased penalty points for offences committed on or after 24 September 2007.

Whilst arguably open to interpretation, the offence of failing to furnish information is committed 28 days after a driver has received a valid notice of intended prosecution and failed to respond to it. It is this date, not the date of the speeding offence, which will be considered when applying the increased penalty.

The change in penalty is brought about by the Road Safety Act 2006 but the change will only apply to offences committed on or after 24 September and will not be applied retrospectively to cases where the date of the offence pre-dates the commencement order (The Road Safety Act 2006 (Commencement No 2.) Order 2007 (No.2472 (C.91))

Historically, the lower penalty for failing to provide driver details enticed offenders who were being accused of high speed offences to simply fail to confirm that they were the driver of a vehicle. Prior to 24 September the maximum penalty for fail to furnish was 3 points or a discretionary ban, whereas a high speed offence could attract up to 6 points or a ban. The increased penalty is likely to reduce the number of offenders who seek to use the disparity in penalties to their advantage.

However, there remain a number of lawful defences available to all motoring offences, including speeding and failing to provide driver details and our advice would always be to speak with an expert before deciding on the best course of action in your own case.