Just seen a Facebook post about a loophole in fixed penalty speed tickets. In a nutshell you have to fill in details of driver but if you don't sign it, it is not admissible in court. The premise is that you are not legally obliged to sign it. Any legal eagles out there know the truth? Quite relevant for me at the moment... Ted
Not been a loophole since 2003 Ted. This particular "wow! Look what you can do to avoid points spiel" has resurfaced periodically on the Internet every couple of years, it is complete tosh. The people with really big wigs, as opposed to magistrates said ""I am satisfied that if it is properly to be inferred from the evidence before the court that an unsigned Section 172 form was made by the Defendant, it is admissible in evidence as a confession." So your only option is to not send it back at all. That then leads to the offence of failing to provide details. Or you could put the wrong details in. That leads to perjury, which leads to crown court, which leads to the dark side. As a rough guide, I find that roughly 100% of,what you read on facebook in respect of the law, immigrants, religion or anything else likely to be slightly contentious, is in fact bollocks.
The loophole was still there a few months back in wales according to an interview with the cheif officer and the judicery but was being 'looked into'....... So personally I wouldn't risk it. Interestingly the percentage of contented tickets going to court in the north wales police region was 0, let alone being sucessfull, (in the same interview) This interview was apparently on a bbc news site but may well have been a fake.
