Speeding fines incurred abroad will now be applicable in the UK

Published 10 August 2017

Four in five British drivers are unaware that speeding tickets incurred abroad will follow them home.

According to a survey by Green Flag, 80 per cent of UK drivers are unaware of the recently amended European speeding laws.

In May 2017, laws were amended so that in 14 EU countries - including France - the vehicle owner is liable for fines, even if they weren't driving at the time the offence took place.

Fines of up to £640 (€750) can be issued for breaking speed limits by more than 31mph (49.8kph). However, foreign drivers won't be penalised if caught speeding in the UK. This is because, in British law, liability lies with the driver of the vehicle, who may be a different person, so the terms won't be enforced.

While 45 per cent of people said they exceeded the speed limit abroad by accident, 19 per cent blamed their lack of knowledge of the country's speed limits. Six per cent even admitted to speeding simply because they knew they couldn't be fined, which is no longer the case.

Almost 70 per cent of the 2015 people surveyed couldn't correctly convert km/h into mph.

While many Brits have disapproved of the amendments to the law, especially because foreign drivers won't be fined for speeding in the UK, over 50 per cent of UK drivers said the new guidelines wouldn't put them off driving abroad.

Comments

BigNig on 10 August 2017

Does this mean overseas speeders will have fines following them home too?

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999pez on 14 August 2017

No. Read the last paragraph of the article - 'foreign drivers won't be fined for speeding in the UK'

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999pez on 14 August 2017

Although I assume this will be rescinded when we leave the EU?

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elfman on 14 August 2017

Most unfair. The driver is the one who should be held responsible. May be nothing to do with the owner.

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Rob Whitmarsh on 14 August 2017

They can be tough. A friend was fined €90 last year for 52k in a 50 limit in rural France. He was in a hire car, which made tracking him easy. I've been flashed a few times in Germany, but never heard anything more.

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Platefinder on 29 June 2018

Hi I have ignored a speeding one from Italy since October 2016 and just recieved another letter asking for me to pay, no threats just a polite request offering me a discount!,,,,,
Does anyone know if it's still worth ignoring as it happened before the 2017 ruling
Thanx chris

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Nobbet on 16 August 2017

b****** spineless MPs should do the same. Fine all overseas drivers for speeding on the spot as in France. Everyone has a credit card nowadays.
DAC 74

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paulspain on 16 August 2017

Had 3 speeding fines reach me last year from Spain, after driving a hire car there. Two from an unseen static camera where the motorway speed limit dropped from 120km/hr to 100 km/hr for a turning off to a town, and one speed limit changed just as the motorway dipped and curved (and not before, which would have been sensible).

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Jeff Lamb on 20 August 2017

I read an article in May 2017, which said that France and Germany had access to thre DVLA at Swansea. It also said that you would get points on your license, for a speeding offended comitted in France or Germany.

Edited by Jeff Lamb on 20/08/2017 at 04:15

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Zantrop on 9 September 2017

A shame if the impunity from fines in France is no longer the case, having been flashed there many times. Although one could always be stopped by the police and fined, for small infractions the fines are fairly low but at least one didn't get points on your licence. If that's all changed, it puts me off driving in France especially since the use of radar detectors is also illegal. The French use of speed cameras tends not to be in dangerous locations specifically, so speeding on long straight autoroutes is risky.

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