Is it illegal to drive 10% over the speed limit?

NAVIGATING the UK’s speeding laws can be tricky, especially with the widely discussed “10% plus 2” rule.

Here’s everything you need to know about the rule and how much you could be fined.

Can you be fined for speeding 10% over the limit?

While it is recommended that police give drivers leeway, it is not guaranteed that you will get away with speeding 10% over the limit.

There is no specific amount of mph you can exceed, as drivers must firmly adhere to restrictions – meaning you can be fined for going just over 1 mph.

The Metropolitan Police reduced its “speed tolerance” in May 2019 but did not announce this publicly – seeing a number of drivers get stung.

Under previous rules, officers set the charge limit for those exceeding the speed limit at 10 percent of the speed limit plus 3 mph.

This meant that those driving below 40km/h in a 20 zone would not face action.

However, the new guidance has reduced this to 10 per cent plus 2mph, reducing the limit to 24mph in a 20 zone.

Other police forces still use the “plus 3mph” formula, but the National Police Chiefs’ Council says it intends to review the national rules.

However, to look for by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) roadside assistance service concluded that there is a very small limit that authorities sometimes ignore.

It showed that speed cameras will go off if you are driving 10% over the limit plus 2mph.

Sarah Lewis, AA spokeswoman, said: “There used to be an unwritten rule that as long as you were driving within approximately 10% of the speed limit, you were unlikely to receive a fixed penalty or a speed awareness course.

“Ultimately this would be at the discretion of the police force, but it would be unusual for someone to be cited for going 32 mph.”

Words like unlikely and unusual indicate that although many people let you off the hook, this doesn’t always happen.

Sarah continued: “The idea that there is a tolerance of around 10 per cent of the speed limit arises from general guidance for enforcement to take into account the inaccuracies of some speedometers.

“Normally we wouldn’t expect to see someone penalized for driving a few kilometers per hour on either side of the limit. However, this is not condoning speeding and should not be used as an excuse to habitually exceed the limits.”

The UK government has announced that from summer 2022, all new cars must be fitted with a speed limiter.

What are the penalties if you are caught speeding?

two

If you believe you have been caught by a speed camera, there will be a 14 day wait for this to be confirmed.

A notification of intent to prosecute is sent to the registered owner of the vehicle and, for minor offences, the police often offer the opportunity to take a speed awareness course instead of issuing fines and penalty points.

Although you have to pay for the course, and it usually takes half a day, it keeps your license clean.

Those who already have points on their licence, or who have committed more serious speeding offences, will receive a minimum fine of £100 and three or six penalty points on their licence.

The fine can be up to £1,000 or £2,500 if you are caught on a motorway.

If you accumulate 12 points or more over a three-year period, you could be disqualified from driving – and you will have to wait four years before registering for the points to be removed.

The minimum penalty for speeding is a £100 fine and three penalty points on your licence.

This is what you are likely to pay in less serious cases, where a fixed penalty notice is sent by post or handed to you on the side of the road.

Magistrates can impose much higher fines and ban drivers from the road if appropriate, for example if the speed is so high that it is considered dangerous.