Notice of Intended Prosecution for speeding

Hello there. I am Gemma, a legal assistant here at Lawyer Destroyer. I know getting a Notice of Intended Prosecution in the post is stressful, but try not to worry. Let us walk through exactly what it is and what you need to do next.

Understanding the notice:

A Notice of Intended Prosecution, or NIP, is a letter from the police telling you that a vehicle registered in your name was caught breaking the speed limit.

Along with the NIP, you will also receive a request for driver information. This is sometimes called a Section 172 request. Legally, the registered keeper of the vehicle must tell the police who was driving at the time of the offence.

Things to check first:

1. The 14 day rule. The police generally have 14 days from the date of the offence to send the NIP to the registered keeper. If you are the registered keeper and the letter arrived much later than this, the police might not be able to prosecute the speeding offence. However, if the car is leased, a company vehicle, or you recently bought it, the 14 day rule only applies to the very first letter sent to the leasing company or previous owner.

2. The details. Check the date, time, and location. Make sure you actually owned the car at that time and see if you can remember who was driving.

Practical next steps:

1. Identify the driver
You must fill out the form to tell the police who was driving. If it was you, fill in your details. If it was a friend or family member, you must put down their details. If you genuinely do not know who was driving, the law requires you to show that you have made every reasonable effort to find out.

2. Return the form on time
You usually have 28 days to return the form to the police. It is a good idea to send it by recorded delivery or keep a proof of postage, just in case it gets lost in the mail. If there is an option to reply online, keep a screenshot or copy of the confirmation number.

3. Wait for the next letter
Returning this form is not an admission of guilt for the speeding offence itself; it just confirms who was driving. Once the police have the driver details, they will write to that person with the actual penalty options.

What happens next:

If you were the driver, the police will usually write back with one of three options.

First, you might be offered a Speed Awareness Course. This is often an option if your speed was only slightly over the limit and you have not attended a similar course in the last three years. This is usually the best practical outcome because you pay for the course but you avoid getting penalty points on your licence.

Second, you might receive a Conditional Offer of a Fixed Penalty. This is typically a fine of 100 pounds and three penalty points added to your driving licence. You can choose to accept this and pay the fine, which quietly ends the matter.

Third, if the speed was particularly high, or if you already have nine or more points on your licence, you might instead be sent a Single Justice Procedure Notice asking you to plead guilty or not guilty in a magistrates court.

Important things to avoid:

Do not ignore the letter. Failing to provide driver details is a separate and distinct criminal offence. It usually results in six penalty points and a hefty fine, which is often much worse than the penalty for the original speeding offence.

Do not lie about who was driving. Asking someone else to take your penalty points is a very serious criminal offence called perverting the course of justice, which regularly leads to a prison sentence.

Take your time to fill the form out accurately. If you have any trouble with the paperwork or if the car was cloned or stolen at the time, just let me know and we can look at your specific situation in more detail.