The new Magistrates Sentencing Guidelines contain two welcomed changes.  First, drivers whose excess speed puts them in the highest sentencing band, will now face a maximum fine of 150% of their weekly income, with a cap of £1,000.  Second, professional drivers are to be held to a higher driving standard — ‘vehicle used for the carriage of heavy goods or for the carriage of passengers for reward’ is to be added as a factor indicating higher culpability for the offence of careless driving.

Both changes were explicitly an acceptance of the arguments put forward by RoadPeace, as acknowledged by the Sentencing Council. Both changes nudge the justice system a little further towards the reduction of road danger. It is said that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. And, on that basis, both changes must be welcomed.

But, more was needed. First, the £1,000 cap on speeding fines, represents a simple discount to those who will struggle least to pay it. And the less they need it, the higher the discount will be. So, “role models” such as Premiership footballers or FTSE 100 CEOs will face a maximum fine of 2.3% and 0.9% of their weekly salaries. Those on the average wage (£94,000) in the Borough of Kensington and Chelsea will face no more than 55%. There is no cap on the fine for drink driving – Yaya Toure of Man City was given a £54,000 fine just before Christmas ; there is no need for one for speeding fines. A consistent relationship between income level and fine level is simply a matter of justice.

And an opportunity was lost to increase the use of driving bans. Speeding drivers prosecuted at court are already a small minority of those sanctioned. In 2015, 1.2m speeding drivers attended NDORS speed awareness courses, 791,000 were given FPNs and only 180,000 (8%) were sent to court.

Yet only 3% of speeding drivers convicted at court were banned – one in 450 of all those sanctioned when speed awareness and FPNs are included. More bans are needed, even if they only last a few weeks. It has been almost 50 years since a mandatory driving ban was introduced for drink driving. And drink driving and associated casualties have decreased. Imagine if there was a mandatory driving ban for the highest band of speeding drivers.

RoadPeace fears this same mistake is being made with the MoJ’s consultation on driving offences. The MoJ have restricted this consultation to just a few offences, mainly dealing with custodial sentences. The only discussion of driving bans is a proposal to increase the mandatory disqualification period from one year to two years for all causing death by driving convictions. But one in five drivers convicted of Causing Death by Careless Driving currently escape any ban, thus showing the need for training of judges.

Updated on: 25 January 2017