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CHECK YOUR OFFENCE CODES (AGAIN)
Safe Speed and the Daily Telegraph exclusively reveal serious errors in offence coding applied to an unknown (but thought to be large) number of driving licences.
In particular some authorities have been erroneously marking driving licences with speeding offence code SP60 instead of the correct and commonplace SP30.
Normal speeding offences on non-motorway roads should be coded SP30.
SP60 is supposed to be reserved for 'undefined' speed limit offences, but has sometimes been applied in error for offences 'where a 60mph speed limit was exceeded'.
Insurance companies apply a higher loading to SP60 offences.
Paul Smith, founder of the Safe Speed road safety campaign (www.safespeed.org.uk) said: "Since we first highlighted this problem a year ago there has been a steady stream of enquiries from drivers whose licences have been wrongly coded."
"The error is potentially serious, because insurance companies may refuse cover to someone who has SP60 coded on their licence. Such a refusal would need to be declared on every insurance proposal for life with a large but unknown total cost."
"Everyone should check their driving licences and ensure that they have not received an SP60 in error.
If you have received an SP60 for a typical speed limit offence then you should contact the Police to get the error corrected.
If the incorrect code has been applied and motor insurance has been affected then it should also be possible to claim compensation."
"Unfortunately this is all too typical of the greedy and slipshod way in which traffic laws are enforced in the speed camera era.
The camera partnerships have expanded quickly with no adequate monitoring systems in place.
They are unaccountable and out of control - it's a runaway gravy train."
Previous Safe Speed press release on the same subject: http://www.safespeed.org.uk/pr124.html
Issued 20th May 2004
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