Road Traffic Law
East London Road Traffic Solicitors
Do you need a clean license for your work but have been charged with a road traffic offence ? Whatever misfortune has come your way on the road, you can be assured that our road traffic solicitors are here to help.
East London Road Traffic solicitors commonly deal with a wide range of offences including:
- Dangerous driving
- Death by dangerous driving
- Careless and inconsiderate driving
- Driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs
- Mobile phone offences
- Speeding
- Parking offences
How we can help you fight a speeding charge
Have you been charged with speeding? Let’s look at some possible arguments we could make to fight the charge.
The majority of speeding incidents are recorded by traffic cameras. There are many types, but the one most commonly used is the GATSO camera. Everyone has seen those familiar grey boxes by the roadside – those are GATSO cameras. Many GATSO cameras can only take pictures from the rear of the car, meaning the driver has to report to a local police station to give his driver details and confirm he was driving the car at the time of the offence. However, if you were not driving the car at the time and have evidence of where you were, it could be argued that since the camera did not identify you as the driver, it cannot be proven beyond all reasonable doubt (i.e. with 99% certainty) that you were the driver.
If you were caught speeding by a handheld camera operated by the police, you could potentially argue that the device was not used within strict police guidelines and that the operator did not receive adequate training to operate the device. You could also argue that the device was not in proper working order/properly calibrated, which is an argument that can also be applied to GATSO devices and other types.
How we can help you fight a mobile phone charge
This has become a politically charged offence and the police are clamping down more and more. There are, however, defences to the offence. It might have been the case that the call was an emergency (for example, you had to call 999) and you could not stop. This is a legitimate defence.
How we can help you fight a careless driving charge
Drivers are generally charged with careless driving where the police feel their driving has fallen below a reasonable standard. It is not necessary to prove that the driver was reckless or drove badly on purpose.
We could try and argue that your driving was of a reasonable standard. If this fails, there are mitigating factors that can be taken into account, including the age and experience of the driver. Whilst a reasonable standard of driving is expected of all drivers holding a license, the courts might be lenient where there are reasons to explain why the driver fell below expected standards.
The police are under a duty to follow procedural rules under PACE (Police and Criminal Evidence Act). As for any criminal offence, it might be possible to show that the police did not follow the rules and have the charge dropped.