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Fighting Back Against Speeding Fines And Penalty Points

The hard pressed UK motorist is, and always will be considered a soft target in the eyes of the individual, the law and the numerous motoring associations. And not without good reason.

Any rise in the cost of oil prices is almost immediately passed on to the motorist at the petrol pumps. Every budget offers the Chancellor another opportunity to raise the cost of the Road Fund Licence (car tax), and, although insurance companies are currently cutting each other's throats to offer us cheaper cover, they'll fight you all the way should you be unlucky enough to have to make a claim.

Then there are congestion charges, wheel clamping campaigns and ever increasing parking fees to contend with, especially near airports and in hospital car parks.

But, top of the list of all the motorist money squeezing opportunities is without a doubt, the speeding fine. Almost every driver will break the speed limit of some road at some time, either intentionally, due to some urgent 'mission', or most likely because of a momentary of lack of concentration.

There are currently than 5,400 static camera sites in the UK and just under 3,500 mobile speed units in operation, so just about anyone is likely to get caught at any given time. Unfortunately for some, they will get caught more than once, which could leave them in very precarious position concerning their future driving excursions.

It's reported that almost a million motorists in the UK are on the brink of facing a driving ban due to the 12 point totting up system. And with 2 million motorists falling victim to speed cameras and mobile units last year, there's obviously no shortage of future potential disqualifications lying on the file.

The Safety Camera Partnership, operating under the guise of a road safety campaign organisation, is considered to be one of the most profitable government 'businesses' of all time, raking in more than *120 million in fines during last year alone. Yet according to Safe Speed, the road safety campaign organization, around 95 percent of road crashes have absolutely nothing to do with speeding.

However, the threat of disqualification due to the accumulation of penalty points on the UK motorist's driving licence is ever present, and for many, it will undoubtedly be the speed camera which will be responsible.

In some areas of the UK, motorists have openly demonstrated their opposition to these 'fund raising' devices. Some have vented their anger by defacing or setting fire to cameras and some have successfully won their speeding cases in the courts. The clear message to motorists is, don't just accept it, fight back.

More recently, vital information has been made available to drivers to enable them to 'know their rights', in the event of facing a speeding fine or even a ban. It would appear that even the lucrative safety camera 'money spinner' operation has a few flaws and loopholes.

Every motorist who values their driving licence would be well advised to find out more about the information now becoming openly available. It's not often the ordinary UK driver has an opportunity to fight back and protect their precious permit, affording them the absolute freedom to travel.

Tony Harper.