Notice of Intended Prosecution

If you receive a Notice of Intended Prosecution (NiP)

The registered keeper of the vehicle will receive this if the vehicle is caught speeding, the vehicle owner has a legal obligation to respond to a NIP, however, just by replying does not mean that you are admitting guilt. The Police have 14 days to issue you with the notice from the date of the offence, if it arrives after the 14 days then you still have to fill it in, however, state on it the date it was received and that you are happy to swear on this date at court. This would form part of your defence. If you report that someone else was driving the vehicle, they will then receive a NIP addressed to them and they will have a legal obligation to respond. The NiP does not have to come by recorded post, just basic (i.e. the very cheapest) mail.

 

If you admit you were the driver the prosecution will then have three options about what to do next, these are usually based on how much over the limit you were going.:

1. Offer you a speed awareness course;
2. Offer you a conditional fixed penalty, which is three points and £100 fine; or
3. Refer the case to Court and issue you with paperwork requiring you to enter a plea.

 

If unsure of the driver

Sometimes it can be unclear who was driving, this is especially true if there are multiple people insured on the vehicle. In this situation, we would suggest that you contact the police and ask for photographic evidence to help you identify them. Technically this may extend the 28-day deadline but sometimes the police abuse their power by using this as a refusal to co-operate and start court proceedings under the notion that you are refusing/failing to identify the driver. If the matter were to proceed to court, we (or your solicitor) could argue that the police were being unreasonable in this approach, you were trying to assist them, not hinder them. Ultimately the police are looking to pin the blame (and fine) on someone with the minimum of effort.

 

NiPs and company cars

The Police have to serve the Notice on the registered keeper as shown on the DVLA database. If, however, this is a company car, the likelihood is that the registered keeper will be the company itself. In these circumstances, the company should act in the following sequence: -

• Check copy records to see who was driving – this can be impossible if multiple drivers share the same vehicle
• If the driver cannot be identified they should request photographic evidence to help the police identify the driver, again this has issues at most cameras are primarily focusing on the number plate, not the driver. In addition, some cameras will typically take photos of the rear of the vehicle, making it impossible to distinguish the driver.
• If the company can 100% identify the driver, then they should inform the Police of their identity, however, if in doubt it would be inherently unfair to name an innocent individual.
• If the company can identify the driver, then they should inform them of the fact that they have identified them to the police., this may affect their employment status within the company – this would be a matter between the company and the driver and not a police matter.
• The Police have the authority to contact everyone insured to drive the vehicle, as such if the company receives a NiP, they should let their drivers know that a letter may be sent to them asking them to disclose the driver, this is based on the assumption that someone will remember who it was.
  1. The Police may threaten potential fines/points for non-disclosure to make sure they can secure a conviction and claim the fine.
  2. Should a driver be identified then we would suggest that the company appoint ourselves to represent their driver in court. As part of our standard defence of that driver, we would ask for whoever identified them to apply to the company for time off to attend court to stand as a witness and we would then question that witness as to their recollection of the events.
  3. Please note that Lestons bear no responsibility for how said witness would be treated by their fellow employees as this would become an employment discrimination matter.
• The Police can also threaten, and possibly seek to leave to prosecute any “director, manager, secretary or similar officer” personally for failing to provide driver information if their actions amount to consent, connivance or neglect, potential actions could be that they will get six points and a fine all of their own. As we are sure such companies would have been cooperative in their identification process, we would fight any claim against them with the utmost vigour. In any case, the company should not be “pushed” to give a name just to satisfy the police.

 

Lestons are not, in any way suggesting that companies should not make appropriate efforts to assist the police, however, it would be unfair on any of their drivers to be accused unless the company were 100% sure of the driver at the time of the offence.

 

Nice try – tried scams that don’t work: -

• Posting a blank piece of paper back using recorded mail
  • The police will send a reminder and possible show the first letter in court, the potential result is a conviction for failing to provide driver details, and/or perverting the course of justice
• Naming someone who has gone abroad
  • There is, of course, the real potential that the person who you knew was driving has moved away, however, if this is not the case and you are caught out then you can expect a conviction for failing to provide driver details.
• Using a patsy
  • Using someone else who is on the insurance policy to take the blame, it must be said that provided the police get their money they don’t usually look too hard, however, if the patsy then informs the police of the incident and the police have CCTV evidence to determine foul play. A potential conviction for perverting the course of justice
• Didn’t receive the NiP in time
  • If you have moved and didn’t notify the DVLA then the police will not allow this as a defence. If, however you genuinely did not receive the NiP within 14 days then we strongly suggest that you attend court, with a representative to inform the court and hopefully nullify the whole situation.

 

How we can help

If you are content to inform us that you were not the driver, or that you didn’t receive the NiP within the allotted timeframe then we, of course, assume your honesty. In this situation, we would suggest that you start a case and inform the police that we will be handling the matter on your behalf. 

 

Upon starting a case your caseworker will create a briefing note for your legal team to examine the situation and check the NIP was issued correctly. To gain our assistance you need to open a case, this is done by taking advantage of our free consultation service, activated by the link at the top of the page, should you wish to start a case the caseworker will send you the suitable payment link. Please note your caseworker can only give generic advice, their role is to prepare your details for handling by our legal team and to act as your point of contact.