Speeding has retained its title as the most common motoring offence in the UK – and figures show the number of drivers doing it has risen dramatically year on year.
The number of drivers convicted in court has risen by 28 per cent of the last 12 months, according to figures from the Ministry of Justice obtained by road safety charity the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM).
115,935 motorists were convicted in 2013, compared with 148,426 in 2014, suggesting motorists are more happy breaking the limit. However the overall figure was only two per cent higher than in 2004 so it’s not necessarily a new attitude given the increasing number of cars and speed cameras on roads.
Second to breaking the speed limit when it comes to the most common motoring offences was no vehicle insurance, followed by failing to supply driver identity information, vehicle registration and excise duty offences and, lastly, driving with excess alcohol.
Naughty motorists were also guilty of neglecting road regulations (up two per cent over 2013 to 16,951 offences), using or causing others to use a mobile phone while driving (down 8 per cent to 16,025 offences) and driving licence-related offences (down 10 per cent at 15,982 offences).
IAM chief executive officer Sarah Sillars said: “We can see from these figures that as the UK comes out of recession traffic levels have risen, speeding appears to be becoming more prevalent and regrettably casualties are rising again.
“The government and police forces cannot afford to take their eye off the ball and more visible policing is, in our view, the key way to ensure that people don’t think they can get away with speeding.”
Are motorists increasingly likely to ignore the speed limit or are police more effective at catching the culprits? Let us know your thoughts.
Leave a Reply