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NEWS RELEASE
18 July 2014
New proposals to ensure foreign speeders can no longer drive away from justice
Speeding foreign drivers could soon be forced to pay their fines under new proposals from the European Commission. The move could save up to 400 lives a year in Europe and help the UK recoup an estimated £3.6 million in annual revenue.
At present, foreign drivers detected by speed cameras do not receive the £100 penalties issued to UK drivers. The new proposal allows for exchange of data between all EU countries, ensuring a fair system of penalties in which foreign drivers are no longer able to drive away from justice.
A coalition of national and European road safety groups are calling for the UK Government to support the new proposal for Cross Border Enforcement of traffic offences. The organisations, including the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS), BRAKE, Living Streets, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accident (RoSPA), RoadPeace, GEM Motoring Assist, See Me Save Me and TISPOL (the European Traffic Police Network) are urging ministers to show their commitment to the proposal, which experts believe will save between 350 and 400 lives a year on Europe's roads1.
Publication of the proposal took place today. (Link:http://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regdoc/index.cfm?fuseaction=list&n=10&adv=0&coteId=1&year=2014&number=476&version=ALL&dateFrom=&dateTo=&serviceId=&documentType=&title=&titleLanguage=&titleSearch=EXACT&sortBy=NUMBER&sortOrder=DESC)
Cross Border Enforcement (CBE) allows law enforcement organisations to pursue traffic offences committed by drivers of vehicles registered in an EU Member State different from the one where their offence was detected.
David Davies, executive director of PACTS, said: "It is unfair and unsatisfactory that as many as one in five drivers escapes prosecution for speeding in the UK because they or their vehicles are from overseas. The decrease in UK road deaths has slowed substantially in the past three years. Additional measures are needed and CBE is one of them."
Kevin Clinton, RoSPA's head of road safety, said: "Cross border enforcement of motoring offences will encourage non-UK drivers to comply with our road laws because they will no longer be able to avoid the penalties for poor driving. This will make our roads, and roads in our European neighbours, safer for everyone."
Julie Townsend, deputy chief executive of Brake, the road safety charity, said: "Through our support services for people bereaved and injured by road crashes, we see time and time again the devastation caused by illegal driving behaviour. The impact is just as catastrophic regardless of where the driver or vehicle is from. Imagine how insulting and incomprehensible it must be then for victims when a driver who puts lives at risk escapes prosecution because their vehicle is registered in another country. Illegal driving crosses borders, so enforcement must cross borders too."
Amy Aeron-Thomas, executive director of RoadPeace, said: "It is not just a matter of fairness that traffic laws should be applied consistently. Many, if not most, of the foreign registered vehicles will be large commercial vehicles, with drivers on long trips. They will pose greater risk with their heavier vehicles and tired drivers. For safety's sake, as well as fairness, foreign drivers need to know that they will be prosecuted for breaking the law."
TISPOL director Pasi Kemppainen commented: "UK drivers know there will be consequences if they are detected by a speed camera. But TISPOL's research shows that as many as one in five speeding offences recorded by safety cameras results in no action being taken, either because of a non-UK registration plate, or a non-resident driver of a UK-registered vehicle2.
"Europe-wide adoption of the new proposal will lead to more effective enforcement, which encourages drivers to comply with safety rules and leads to a rapid reduction in deaths and injuries."
Research by TISPOL on offences by non-UK drivers also shows:
In London, a total of 13,547 offences between 2009 and 2013 have resulted in no further action because the vehicle was not registered in the UK. At £60 per penalty, this equals £812,820 in lost revenue.
In Lothian and Borders, a total of 18,192 speeding offences were detected by cameras in the period 1 April 2013 to 31 March 2014. Of these, 2,686 could not be processed because the registration number was non-UK, and a further 869 resulted in no further action because the UK-registered vehicle was being driven by a non-resident. This equals 19.54% of total detections.
In the Thames Valley region alone (Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Oxfordshire) during 2013, 3,402 speeding detections out of a total of 162,271 resulted in no further action and a loss of approximately £350,000 in revenue
In Kent during 2013, 2,267 out of 63,563 detections resulted in no further action and a loss of approximately £165,000 in revenue
A survey of speed camera partnerships show that in 2012, an estimated 60,000 fines worth £3.6m were written off because there was no effective way to track down non-resident drivers3
Pasi Kemppainen continued: "Currently non-residents represent around 5% of road traffic in the EU, whereas the share of non-resident drivers in speeding offences is around 15% on average4. French figures show that in 2013 there were 500,000 recorded speeding and red traffic light offences committed by drivers in UK-registered vehicles4.
"The UK has one of the lowest road deaths in Europe. But recent figures5show it no longer tops the league table for road safety. There is still scope for reducing the annual toll of deaths further. We urge ministers to demonstrate political leadership as a road safety frontrunners and support this EU law that will promote equality across Europe, deter risk-taking and ultimately save lives."
Ends
References
1.http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/enforcement/doc/full_impact_assessment_en.pdf
2. Figures for Lothian and Borders, 1 April 2013 - 31 March 2014.
4. French Minstry of Transport
Notes for editors
For more information, or to arrange an interview with TISPOL Director Pasi Kemppainen, please contact TISPOL media adviser James Luckhurst (media @ tispol.org, +44 7770 608153).
Cross Border Enforcement refers to the pursuit of traffic offences committed by drivers of a car which is registered in an EU Member State different from the one where they were detected. The goal of the Directive is to offer a tool for enforcement authorities in the Member State where the offence was committed to pursue and follow up the financial penalty of the drivers of cars registered in other EU Member States when they commit traffic offences.
The European Court of Justice ruled that the legal basis of the Directive on Cross Border Exchange of Information related to road safety 2011/82, which came into force in November 2013, was incorrect. The European Court of Justice found that the measures proposed in the Directive did not concern ‘prevention of crime' as defined under the police co-operation rules, but rather road safety, which is a transport issue.
However, given the importance of the law for road safety, the ECJ said the current rules will stay in place while a new proposal is agreed. The Court has granted a one-year transition period, meaning the rules will remain in effect until May 2015.
Following the ruling a European Commission spokesperson said a new proposal will be put forward with a legal basis under the EU transport policy. This proposal is expected to be published on 23 July 2014.
The goal is to get the new proposal approved before the one-year reprieve runs out next May. The implications of the ruling mean that the UK would now be covered by the Directive.
TISPOL believes that a legislative instrument will clearly contribute to the EU's road safety policy of reaching the target of halving deaths on the EU's roads by 2020.