Speeding Fines – How To Contest An Unfair Speeding Fine

I’d like to begin this article by saying that if you know that you were speeding, and you got caught … too bad. Speed is cited as a factor in a third of all fatal crashes, and if it’s my daughter that runs out into the road one day, I’d really like her to be a near-miss rather than a tragedy. BUT!

That was a big ‘but’, wasn’t it . Speeding fines aren’t just something to lie down for, and brace for impact. Sometimes you gotta get in your corner, lace up your gloves, put on a mean look and get in the ring!

If your alleged speeding offense was only for a few kilometres an hour over the limit, or if you don’t believe that you were going as fast as your fine says, or if you weren’t the driver, don’t run for your wallet just yet.

Technology is not always perfect, which is why police generally give a little leeway on speeding offences. You will hear different figures, depending on how many beers the expert you are talking to has downed, and whether you are at a family barbeque or the pub, but in the past, in some areas, you will get a 5% leeway. This means that if the speed limit is 100km/h, you may be able to go 105km/h without getting booked.

Now, they give you this leeway for a reason – because technology is imperfect, and if you take that ticket to court, there is a high likelihood you’ll get off. If you were only going a few k’s an hour over the limit, we recommend looking at that tiny 6pt writing at the bottom of your Notice of Infringement as soon as you get it, and taking the recommended steps to contest it.

Do keep in mind, though, that depending on your state, an $80 fine can turn in to a $2,000 number if you fight your speeding ticket and lose. So make sure you have good cause for fighting it, not just for the sake of children everywhere that don’t look before they run to get their balls.

Another good reason for fighting your speeding tickets is an exposé that a popular current affairs show in Australia did. In this case, police were (allegedly) misusing their own equipment in order to get higher readings from motorists, and boost their infringement rates. Not exactly cricket, is it?!

If you don’t believe you were going as fast as the speed camera says, we advise you to fight the ticket also. However, keep in mind that your claim will be harder to prove – dodgy cops may be dodgy, but they aren’t always dumb. Get professional help in this case – Scott Cooper is a self proclaimed speeding ticket-boxer. You can get in contact with him at Speeding Fine Consultants.

You know all of those dirty tricks that police use to catch you speeding – hiding in driveways, behind bushes, and around bends? In fact, in most cases, this is against their own guidelines. Speed cameras are not supposed to be concealed (hidden behind bushes, etc), they should be used from fully marked police vehicles, they are not allowed to operate on hills or bends (presumably because of initial acceleration to get up a hill in the first case, and difficulty getting an accurate reading in the second), and they are not supposed to take readings from vehicles head on, only from behind.

If you’ve been snapped in any of these cases, it may not be fair that you have to pay a fine, or your reading may not be accurate. The first thing to do is check your actual speeding notice – they all have instructions on what to do if you don’t believe the penalty is fair. There will often be a short form on the back to fill out and return to the traffic department in your state – do that promptly, and the court will take a better view of you.