Parked car written off, recommend a replacement please!

[Darrell]

How come - for 4mph over you’d surely be offered a fixed penalty notice (£100) or one of the online courses (2-3 hours on a computer and a similar cost but no points)

Crazy this went to court unless you challenged it or something?

I’m not actually sure tbh. It came this morning.

I did get a speeding ticket through the post but I’ve not let anything slip by me so I’ve got some investigating to do.

 

[Will]

I’m not actually sure tbh. It came this morning.

I did get a speeding ticket through the post but I’ve not let anything slip by me so I’ve got some investigating to do.

When did you get the speeding ticket? I think it’s NIP (notice of intended prosecution) - and you have to respond to it within a fixed period of time (2 weeks maybe?). It must have been a while since the offence as it would have had to been sent out, then go through the process to court etc.

 

[Darrell]

When did you get the speeding ticket? I think it’s NIP (notice of intended prosecution) - and you have to respond to it within a fixed period of time (2 weeks maybe?). It must have been a while since the offence as it would have had to been sent out, then go through the process to court etc.

I need to check to see if I’ve got in-opened mail.

 

[Doodle]

Disgraceful. I cannot think of any valid reason why they would not attend. Quite frankly, any report of a drunk driver should be treated as an IR and officers should be attending on blues and twos., Met or no Met.

SOP nowadays it seems - unless someone has been injured they can't be bothered.

A couple of years ago the son of the local bar owner buried his car into a nearby garage while blind stinking drunk. Police weren't going to turn up until the caller mentioned that someone thought he might have hit a person in the process - enough to get them to act but sufficiently vague to be chalked up to confusion and error when they arrived.

 

[JHS]

Given where it will be parked this fits the brief.

 

[markjay]

Given where it will be parked this fits the brief.
View attachment 164267

Ah, a beautifully restored Mk2.....

 

[neilrr]

markjay,

That ship has already sailed. He has claimed through his own insurance. They have provided a car.

 

[ALFAitalia]

Why on earth would anyone do that?....madness.

 

[markjay]

Why on earth would anyone do that?....madness.

I think that what neilrr is saying is that the chap claimed via his own insurer, but not claimed against his own policy - I.e. his insurer will claim off the other-party's insurer. In these circumstances, your own insurer effectively acts as accident management agents.

 

[ALFAitalia]

Hopefully......I never get my insurance company involved at all .....never had an accident that was claimed off my insurance (37 year no claims!....39 on bikes).....I find that going through the other persons insurance speeds things up no end as the two insurance companies don't have to waste time sending info back and forth. At the end of the day its nothing to do with his own insurance company.

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

They've had the GTI for 3 or 4 years and fancy a change, it's excessively quick for their needs & location these days.

A fresher Golf 1.5 would feel different and be fast enough for London, without being a GTI

But unless they say what they "need" we'll be flailing in the German dark: A / B class, BMW 1 series, Golf / T Roc etc.

 

[Will]

This is crazy.

I’ve just received a letter from Bromley magistrates court telling me that because I was driving at 24 mph in a 20 mph zone at 7.15am on a bright Sunday morning in April they are going to relieve me of £574 and give me 3 points in return!!

I need to check to see if I’ve got in-opened mail.

I didn’t notice until this morning that this was from back in April!

That’s a very long time ago - unless you’ve moved house or the V5 was in an incorrect address etc then you probably should have had at least a couple of letters I would think - the original NIP, plus possibly notification that this was being taken to court also.

Not sure if you can do much about it now though.

 

[neilrr]

Darrell,

The new pepipoo site may help you get out of your expensive ticket - Free Traffic Legal Advice - Index

MIW see post #1 regarding what they need in a replacement car.

Anyway, they are in the market for a replacement. New, fancy, expensive are not on as it'll be living on a London street exposed to the general population. Got to be ULEZ compliant, a car big enough for a cocker spaniel in the boot regularly & occasionally 4 humans in the seats, petrol (circa 8,000 p.a. so not worth messing with a newish diesel I think), reliable & all the usual stuff people are looking for in a car.

Budget around £10-11K.

 

[neilrr]

P.S. I've been suggesting something Japanese but they are turning their noses up at the prospect.

I see a lot more Korean vehicles on the road lately, some quiet striking looking. Anyone got any experience of them?

 

[markjay]

Hopefully......I never get my insurance company involved at all .....never had an accident that was claimed off my insurance (37 year no claims!....39 on bikes).....I find that going through the other persons insurance speeds things up no end as the two insurance companies don't have to waste time sending info back and forth. At the end of the day its nothing to do with his own insurance company.

As above.

In addition, once you have (effectively) appointment your insurer as an agent to act on your behalf, they may (and have done in some cases) accept liability or go knock-for-knock, even when the other party is clearly at fault, in which case you do end up with an (unexpected) claim on your own policy, and you have no say in the matter. Strange but true.

The bottom line is that insurers have legal obligations towards their customers, but this is not the same as looking after their customers' best interests - instead, they look after their own best interests. This is just how it is.

 

[markjay]

P.S. I've been suggesting something Japanese but they are turning their noses up at the prospect.

I see a lot more Korean vehicles on the road lately, some quiet striking looking. Anyone got any experience of them?

Yup.

Had a Kia Soul II 2010 Diesel for 5 years.

Very rugged and ultra reliable. Tough little nut. No issues whatsoever. Only thing, it wasn't a particularly refined car, it felt quite basic, but the Koreans have improved significantly since.

I've had my Hyundai IONIQ 5 for 3 years now, very very impressed with both the reliability and build quality. Certainly comparable to Japanese build quality.

 

[Pontoneer]

I need to check to see if I’ve got in-opened mail.

If the original NIP was not served ( delivered by post ) within 14 days of the alleged offence , then the prosecution fails .

If this letter is genuinely the first you’ve heard of it , and you were convicted in absentia , then you need to go back to the clerk of the court , explaining this , and ask for the judgement to be set aside .

That opens the door for the case to be heard again , and when it is , you must go along to make representations .

At that point , you must state that you never received the original NIP , and that it now being time barred , the case will be dismissed .

If there is any dispute over this , which can only be that in the event of you moving house you failed to update DVLA , or similarly if there was a change of keeper not notified promptly , then the onus is on the prosecution to serve it in time .

Service not only means posting the NIP so that in the normal course of the postal service it would arrive within the 14 day period , but that it MUST actually arrive in time . If the NIP arrives even one day late , or indeed not at all , then the prosecution must fail .

The relevant law regarding this is the Interpretation Act 1978 , in particular para 7

7​

Where an Act authorises or requires any document to be served by post (whether the expression "serve" or the expression " give " or " send " or any other expression is used) then, unless the contrary intention appears, the service is deemed to be effected by properly addressing, pre-paying and posting a letter containing the document and, unless the contrary is proved, to have been effected at the time at which the letter would be delivered in the ordinary course of post.

Interpretation Act 1978

www.legislation.gov.uk

Since such documents are never sent by registered or recorded delivery , then without proof of receipt , the onus lies with the prosecution to prove that it was actually delivered , and since that is impossible , established case law is that the case will be thrown out .

It is not too late to have this overturned , but you must act promptly and be clear that this recent communication is the first you have heard of the matter .

You may wish to engage a solicitor , but it is actually quite easy to go to the clerk of the court and deal with it yourself .

If you do engage a solicitor , be sure to instruct him to ask for costs .

 

[Pontoneer]

When did you get the speeding ticket? I think it’s NIP (notice of intended prosecution) - and you have to respond to it within a fixed period of time (2 weeks maybe?). It must have been a while since the offence as it would have had to been sent out, then go through the process to court etc.

As above , the NIP needs to be served within 14 days of the alleged offence , you then get something like 28 to 30 days to respond ( it has been a good many years since I last had one ) , either confirming you were driving or naming someone else who was . If you refer someone else as the driver , a new NIP is sent to them , with an extension on the time .

If the original NIP does not arrive , or arrives even one day late ( it is always important to check this if you receive one ) then the prosecution fails and the charge must be dismissed .

See my post above re what to do if the first you hear of a case is that you were convicted in absentia .

 

[markjay]

This is crazy.

I’ve just received a letter from Bromley magistrates court telling me that because I was driving at 24 mph in a 20 mph zone at 7.15am on a bright Sunday morning in April they are going to relieve me of £574 and give me 3 points in return!!

The NIP is deemed served two working days after having been sent by the police. If the NIP was not received, and assuming that the registered keeper's address is correct on the DVLA database (which it would be, given that you received the letter from the court), then you can claim it wasn't served and the onus is on the police to prove that it was sent, and no later than two working days before the original 14 day period expired. If the police are able to prove that the NIP was indeed sent, then it is presumed to have been served, however not all is lost because you may still convince the magistrate that you never received it. But, obviously, at this point, it's down to the magistrate whether they choose to believe you or not, because the police only need to prove that the NIP was sent on time, I.e. they do not have to prove that you actually received it.

 

[markjay]

7​

Where an Act authorises or requires any document to be served by post (whether the expression "serve" or the expression " give " or " send " or any other expression is used) then, unless the contrary intention appears, the service is deemed to be effected by properly addressing, pre-paying and posting a letter containing the document and, unless the contrary is proved, to have been effected at the time at which the letter would be delivered in the ordinary course of post.

Interpretation Act 1978

www.legislation.gov.uk

Since such documents are never sent by registered or recorded delivery , then without proof of receipt , the onus lies with the prosecution to prove that it was actually delivered , and since that is impossible , established case law is that the case will be thrown out .

True, but note that it is considered 'delivered' if the prosecution can prove that it was sent on time.