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Hi All,
Thames Valley Police have issued me a court summons for speeding. I dont really want to go into the details of it on the forum, but I could really do with a recommendation for a good solicitor to approach for advice.
Annoyingly, they have had since feb to issue me with this summons, I only recieved it today and the court hearing is on the 10th June!! So time is of the essence.
Cheers
Pete
I think the standard approach is to try and get your wife to 'fess up (and then *not* to have an affair).
pulls up chair. Grabs biccies.
Make this quick, lads, I have to go and pick up jr in an hour.
Did you receive a NIP within 14 days of the alleged offence?
chuckles at wwaswas
surely the answer depends on
1. where you live
2. whether you did it
3. how much money you have
I think 3 is the most important
Jesus, Stoner - just leave later and rag the arse off your car on the way round there 🙄Stoner - Member
Make this quick, lads, I have to go and pick up jr in an hour.
Mate got caught speeding and was going to end up with > 12 points. He hired "Mr Getyouoff" solicitor (£££). The judge just laughed as he was caught bang-to-rights. 2 weeks ban. I shudder to think what his insurance is now. 😮
My cousin in law is a serial speeder, been caught so many times he's already had three bans, but after each time, he just carries on regardless (after the ban has expired). Doesn't seem to affect his insurance unduly. Nor does it seem to have any affect on his driving mentality.
Hmmm, in light of recent threads re cars and cyclists perhaps you should man up and get used to buses for a bit.
If you don't want to be a pedestrian drive more slowly. 😀
It really depends on what the conviction is for.
I had a clean license for 10 years and caught doing a naughty speed. I was issued a court summons and offered 6 points and a sizeable fine. You just need to take it on the chin and suck it up. However if you are already on 9 points then you're stuffed.
Good luck!
Road traffic law ain't rocket science most of the specialist road traffic lawyers do it because it is easy money . Legal aid pays poor fixed fees calculated on a nominal rate of £40-£69 pounds per hour (cost of time not lawyers wage) private client work pays £100 to £200 per hour . legal aid is mired in red tape and takes 3 months to pay . Private clients pay cash on the nail.
I suggest you contact a solicitor local to the court ask to speak to a partner and discuss your options.
For a relitively straight forward case i would charge £500 always remember most solicitors quotes are net of vat which will be added on.
If you are well over a ton which by the sounds of it you are, you are prob best going down the apologetic route. Having one blip on 10 years will possibly be seen as partly admissible. You could throw into the mix that average miles per year is 12000, you do xxx per year if over this and have always had a clean licence, again suggesting it was a daft mistake. Check the time scale they have to issue court date etched and any inaccuracies on their part will get you off.
A friend told his solicitor to do one in court last time, represented himself and got off scot free! Sort out your facts and technicalities if there are one and stand up yourself! At least if you get a ban you haven't had to line a solicitors pockets for the pleasure of doing nothing also, put it toward taxis!
A mate of mine's dad was done for drink driving. Not for the first time, and not surprising as he's never actually sober.
He hired Nick Freeman to defend his dad. Not only did he get him off, the judge gave the police a dressing down and made them pay the legal fees.
Amusing and really not, all at the same time.
Don't know if he's still about.
Not sure, but a friend of ours was caught at quite a speed (immediate ban speed) few years back. He was advised not to respond or something as he could only get done for the 'not responding' (or whatever it was) and not for the actual offence. cant really remember the details, but he did get this advise from a solicitor.
Ended up with just 3 points I seem to remember (was travelling over 90mph i think).
Dont think it really helps, but get a solicitor's advice as soon as possible after the offence!
Simone
Bit of a leap from 'speeding' there!If you are well over a ton which by the sounds of it you are
Some more info [url= http://www.which.co.uk/cars/driving/driving-advice/dealing-with-speeding-tickets/speeding-fines-your-rights/ ]HERE[/url] and as cougar says - was there a valid reason for the long delay in issuing the NIP?
Workmate caught doing 120mph on his bike. 2 week ban and no points. Mate caught doing 107 mph , was polite, done for 96 mph and got a speed awareness course !!
Just take a 2 week holiday abroad if thats the speed you were doing........
But was there a delay in the NIP? That is a very different thing than a court summons.
If its a summons for speeding then its within the 6 month window allowed to bring the case to court.
Don't do the ignore thing now. The fine is huge £1000ish and the offence code on your licence is crippling on your insurance for 5 years.
You can try an early guilty plea which reduces the fine a bit. If you try an exceptional hardship plea it has to demonstrate other people will be adversely affected if you are banned, not just you not being able to drive to coed y brenin
Pepipoo speeding section is good for advice
As bland said, don't bother lining a solicitors pockets, there's plenty of advice on the web about getting off speeding tickets
Try this,
http://roadtrafficrepresentation.com/RTR/PublicForms/Home.aspx
It is a new type of service and I have heard that they are very good.
NJA i just tried the road traffic representation site and used their interactive free advise thing to do a worked example it got the answer wrong and was a Tad confusing.
represent yourself do the research on what may allow you to keep your licence (work, dependents etc) and forget solicitors, they are useless shites, and the most untrustworthy scum on the earth, next to politicians
+1 Sancho. A friend of mine was up to 9 points and got himself yet another SP30. He asked a friend who specializes in this type of law to represent him. She required him to get a reference from employer quoting how he needed his licence to carry out his job but his employer refused. She then declined to represent him and advised he was wasting his and her time. He went on to represent himself; ended up having a licence with 12 points, no totting up, and a nominal fine. He's since had another SP30 Represented himself again & was going to be given another chance when the court realised he was using the same reason within a 12 month period which you cant do apparently. He now has a 6 month ban... doubt he learnt his lesson though.
they are useless shites, and the most untrustworthy scum on the earth
Don't try to be tactful, if you don't like them just say so 🙄
NIP was recieved 12 days later. It was the court summons that took 3 months!!
Hmmm, in light of recent threads re cars and cyclists perhaps you should man up and get used to buses for a bit.If you don't want to be a pedestrian drive more slowly.
There are lots of other threads on here related to speeding, maybe you should post on those. THIS thread is a genuine ask for help / advice, you know nothing about me or my driving history so please kindly go away.
To everyone else, thanks for your input. I dont really want to have to pay solicitors, so gonna go down the road traffic representation route.
As bland said, don't bother lining a solicitors pockets, there's plenty of advice on the web about getting off speeding tickets
A lot of it is absolute bobbins, too.
Do you pull your own teath too?
Post your issue and I will tell you wether in my opinion it is something you can do yourself or wether you.would be better paying a solicitor. See some of the told a solicitor to do one posts above . Where the bloke planned to lie and say he was going to lose his job when his employer would not confirm it he was obviously better representing himself as a lawyer cannot mislead the court. Where he had a previous special reasons argument succeed he may well have been better paying for someone who knew the law.
In general terms if you plan to plead guilty to a minor road traffic offence such as speeding and you are aiming for mercy you are as well representing yourself. If you are hopping to mess about with nip issues or
The like again chose the web advise carefully but you can do this yourself. For serious offenses drink drive with high readings dangerous driving and any denied matters that raise technical issues you are better with a lawyer.
As a criminal solicitor I actively discourage the majority of clients who seek to instruct me in driving cases as in many cases there is very little difference I can make to the outcome other than to add a big bill on top of the fine
[i]To everyone else, thanks for your input. I dont really want to have to pay solicitors, so gonna go down the road traffic representation route. [/i]
Again, this depends on whether you'll be more successful than with a Solicitor - and the result.
I'd have no sympathy for a load of SP30's, but would have if you'd been caught 5 times doing 85mph on a M-Way in 3 years.
When I used a Solicitor I had a bigger problem (alleged careless driving), for £300 she 'assisted' me in completing the various paperwork. The Police accepted my story of the events as opposed to the other guy, so no prosecution. Money well spent.
Pete hunjan
Its easy to stay the right side of the law when driving.
Clearly you are being summoned for good reason.
You dont describe the incident, so clearly it is something you are guilty of and need to pay the price.
Yet you are seeking advice on how to 'get away with it'.
You cant blame people for guessing what youve done so dont berate them.
you are seeking advice on how to 'get away with it'.
Is he? Where's he said that?
He's asked for advice, there's been no mention of trying to "get away with" anything. If I were going to court for something, I'd want advice too.
I'm afraid in my past I was a serial dick head (driving wise).
On one occasion (potential banning speed), I got a local solicitor (it was in the boonies and he spoke the lingo), a letter from my employer and claimed exceptional hardship. I attended, best bib and tucker, looked very contrite and got 6 points and a mahoosive fine for well over 100mph.
Another time, I didn't use a solicitor but put together a very comprehensive mitigation statement. I attended, best bib and tucker, looked very contrite and got 3 points and a £200 fine for well over 100mph.
Either is possible (as is a ban) but if you show you're taking thing seriously, show contrition and can demonstrate hardship (driving for work etc), they seem less likely to ban outright (IME).
Good luck (and ignore the high horsemen, holier than thou comments). We all make mistakes.
Crankboy can you stop those posts i am starting to think that the legal profession may include some honourable people in their midst
She required him to get a reference from employer quoting how he needed his licence to carry out his job but his employer refused. She then declined to represent him and advised he was wasting his and her time. He went on to represent himself; ended up having a licence with 12 points, no totting up, and a nominal fine
I don't get the problem - she didn't think she could help him and didn't want him to waste his money.
Is he? Where's he said that?He's asked for advice, there's been no mention of trying to "get away with" anything. If I were going to court for something, I'd want advice too.
In fairness his method of requesting such advice does lead it open to conjecture somewhat.
And presumably 'getting away with it', is exactly what the OP is attempting to do. People rarely ask for legal advice on how to obtain a more negative outcome. I certainly wouldn't.
I guess it's possible that he could be asking advice so that he can do the exact opposite in an attempt to get the worst possible outcome, but it seems pretty unlikely.
"Do I need a solicitor" and "what do I do in court" seem like fairly reasonable questions to me.
Legal advice may be needed to decide wether or not he is in fact guilty of the offence. Or as to the range of sentences and how to present his mitigation to achive an appropriate and fair sentence. People sometimes just want to be told how a court appearance works.
Only if he knows that he is guilty and seeks advice to avoid conviction is he trying to get away with it.
But it is very hard to know or to offer advice when we don't know what he is accused of.
I am truly glad that I am not bring tries on a court with some of you as jury members. Jumping to conclusions, making huge assumptions and taking the moral high ground on your presumption of his guilt.
Give the OP a break!
SEND HIM DOWN
*GAVEL*
jamj1974 - Member
I am truly glad that I am not bring tries on a court with some of you as jury members. Jumping to conclusions, making huge assumptions and taking the moral high ground on your presumption of his guilt.
Well he has admitted to driving a car....
(If it's a motorbike, then he's obviously innocent 🙂 )
"Do I need a solicitor" and "what do I do in court" seem like fairly reasonable questions to me.
Its tougher being a mod than I realised 😛
52mph in a 30.
No, I don't intend to "get away with it. "
Rather, the letter that came with the summons says "get some advice". So I'm asking here to recommend me someone to ask for said advice - already done a bit of interweb research and found loads of lawyers promising the world. Never been in court before so that in itself is giving me brown underpants.
Really what I want to know is:-
1) plead guilty by post or be present in court??
2) really don't want to be disqualified for anything more than a couple of weeks (cos I can't drive for a couple of weeks due to a operation anyway)
3)What can I say to get the magistrate to be lenient and give points / fine?? Have 3 points already.
That's where I'm coming from.
Cheers
you don't need a solicitor, if you have three points then you may get six, i'd recommend pleading guilty by post and submitting your licence, no need to go to court, its pretty simple.
very very unlikely to get a ban.
court would just be a waste of your and the court time as its pretty cut and dried.
Don't plead guilty by post, they'll only have to send a meat wagon for you anyway. Turn up and take it like a man...
you don't need a solicitor, if you have three points then you may get six, i'd recommend pleading guilty by post and submitting your licence, no need to go to court, its pretty simple.
very very unlikely to get a ban.
court would just be a waste of your and the court time as its pretty cut and dried.
See? Why would anyone want a solicitor's advice when you get could get the unsubstantiated opinion of some random off the Internet for free? 😀
At last , I don't have the guidelines to hand but a quick google will get you them also the link I criticised above should do it.
52 in a 30 is unlikely to result in a ban more likely to result in 4 or 5 points . So putting you on 8 with 4 left. Points count for 3 years.
I would say don't plead guilty by post but go to court. Do do a letter setting out your mitigation but hand it over in court . Being there means you can deal with any questions or issues that arise . Also magistrates are human it is harder to be nasty to someone stood in front of you.
The magistrates court is used to dealing with unrepresented defendants and not as formal as the Crown Court you see on tv.
Personally unless you begged me to I wouldn't take your money to do this case. You can get as good a result for yourself.
Do read the guidelines and consider the aggravating factors these are the ones that increase the chance of a ban . Showing off . Location road conditions state of repair of car etc.. If these are bad you may want to at least have a chat with a local solicitor.
My best result was 3 points for 60 in a 30 zone outside a school during national road safety week.
I though points were on your license for 4 years ?
56 in a 30 many years ago got me 3 points and a £40 fine.
Radar gun from behind a parked car.
Sent off licence and all done by post.
IIRC you might have to pay a bigger fine if it goes to court as its a time / inconvienience thing for the police.
Unfortunately ive had many speeding convictions, ive lost my license 4 times as a result, ( none in the last 6 years, thankfully I grew up eventually!), for all but one I represented myself in court.
For 52mph in a 30mph I'd expect three points and a £60 fine unless there are other factors ( ie if it was outside a primary school at 3pm).
I've pleaded guilty by post to a similar offence and was given 5 points instead of 3 for no apparent reason so I'd always advise going to court so that you can put your side forward and present yourself as a sane human being who made a mistake.
At the end of the day though the law is the law and if you break it you have to take the consequences on the chin!
Starting point Disqualify 7 – 56 days OR 6 points according to the guideline but you are at the very bottom of that bracket which starts at 50 mph for a 30 zone .
Google magistrates association sentencing guidelines.
If you do get a disqualification for the offense you don't get the points as well.
Having refreshed my memory from the guidelines I am still of the view you could do this yourself and that my local court would be unlikely to disqualify you. However given that the guidelines do give it as the starting point you may want to have a chat to a local lawyer.
For toting up, points are on for 3 years. They can be removed from the license after 4 but don't count towards your magic 12 total in the 4th year.
For 52mph in a 30mph I'd attend with my head bowed...
But, as said if there is any whiff of school etc in the vicinity (or the Magistrate, or his Mum etc live there...) then you could get a more than 3 points and a short ban.
And stop speeding in 30's. Its far more relaxed to drive at 30mph as you are never tailgating anyone (except in a jam) and most folk are sat behind you. Once out of the 30 you've the road open in front, empty. Then you can speed 🙂
I got taken to court for 56mph in a 30 many moons ago, pleaded guilty by post and ended up with 6 points and a £280 fine plus court costs of £30 iirc. 😯
Cant help but wonder if I had gone to court and looked very sorry in front of the magistrate they may have been a bit more lenient with me.
You are certainly into risk of ban territory at that speed. But the circumstances make a big difference - which road, weather, traffic, time of day, narrow/wide road etc. They can't ban you without you going to court - but will just demand your appearance if they are considering it. I recommend you go and show you are taking it seriously, pleading guilty by letter suggests you are not. If you are going without a lawyer then give the Clerk of Court a call before the case and he will talk you through the process - he can't advise on your specific case.
Bear in mind that an early guilty plea (at first opportunity without going to trial etc) will get you typically a 30% discount from the point / ban as well as the fine. So max points become 4 and max ban is just over a month.
Good point about pleading guilty by post looking like I'm not taking it seriously.
Just wondering now wether I should see a local solicitor (aylesbury/Buckingham) to put together a carefully worded grovelling letter or wether to do it myself and save myself the fees for the fine.
Thanks for everyone's input so far, makes me feel a bit better. Judging by some of the stories on this thread of multiple bans etc I'm quite pleased with my relatively clean driving record!!
maybe get crankboy to represent you, if you pay him enough he might get you off but if you pay only a fixed fee, then he will probably recommend you get banned. 😉
have a look at this web site;
http://www.motorlawyers.co.uk/services/mitigation.htm
it has some sensible advice.
Don't drive to court... If you are banned its effective immidiatly. I reckon your looking at a big fine and a bag of points.
52 in a 30 zone for a first offender pleading not guilty; band b fine with range for points of 7-56 days disqualification OR 6 points. Where was the offence? Near a school or pedestrians is an aggregating factor. A genuine emergency is mitigating. Consider a reduction for a guilty plea.
I'd plead guilty and take the six points if it was a genuine mistake and first offence. If you are a serial offender, expect a ban. A band b fine is a weeks relevant income.
My wife, who's sentencing guidelines these are taken from, is not a fan of lawyers seeking technicalities. But every bench is different. I don't think you need a solicitor to represent you, but you should decide what to plead.