Almost 282,000 motorists were caught speeding in the East of England last year, despite the UK advised to ‘stay at home’ for most of the year.
That’s according to new Freedom of Information data obtained by Confused.com, which suggests drivers in the region collectively paid out at least £28million in fines for speeding last year, based on the minimum fine a driver must being £100.
According to the data, police forces in the East of England recorded motorists hitting speeds of up to 150mph in the region last year, suggesting drivers were taking advantage of empty roads during the nation-wide lockdown. This offence was recorded by Cambridgeshire Constabulary on the A1M near Sawtry.
However, this isn’t the most prolific road in the region for speeding offences. According to the data, Norfolk Police recorded more than 7,000 offences on the A134 in Thetford in 2020, making it one of the worst roads in the region for speeding.
Norfolk was in fact revealed to have the highest number of speeding offences last year, with the local police force recording more than 53,000 drivers breaking the speed limit over the 12 months. This is followed by Bedfordshire Police, which reported more than 52,000 offences over the year.
Speeding offences in 2020, broken down by police force in the East of England
Police Force
Speeding offences reported
Norfolk Constabulary
53,472
Bedfordshire Police
52,096
Hertfordshire Police
49,874
Essex Police
49,485
Suffolk Constabulary
41,220
Cambridgeshire Constabulary
35,698
The number of drivers caught breaking the speed limit in the East of England last year accounted for 12% of the total UK speeding offences last year. In total, a whopping 2.2 million motorists were caught driving above the speed limit, hitting speeds of up to 163mph in some regions. While this is a 10% drop compared to 2019, it’s still considerably high considering that the UK spent much of the past 12 months being advised to stay home or stay local. Unsurprisingly, offences dropped in April following the announcement of a UK-wide lockdown, although 84,452 motorists were still caught travelling above the speed limit during this time. However, this almost doubled to 165,609 in May when restrictions started to ease. And offences continued to increase over the summer, peaking at 225,297 in July.
If a driver is caught speeding, they’ll be on the receiving end of a minimum £100 fine. This means that UK drivers collectively paid out an eye-watering £200 million in fines last year(2). However, in some cases, drivers could expect to be paying a significant amount more.
A change in the law in 2017 means that drivers caught speeding could have to pay up to 175% of their weekly salary in fines, depending on the extent of the offence(2). However, without one clear sum for all offenders, it can be confusing to know exactly how much someone can expect to pay. To give drivers an idea of how much they could be forking out for breaking the speed limit, Confused.com has created a speeding fine calculator, which works out the total fine based on their income and the severity of the offence.
However, this isn’t the only confusion drivers face around speeding laws. According to further research by Confused.com, nearly a quarter (24%) of UK drivers are unclear on the 10% +2mph myth. Similarly, one in 10 (11%) motorists are confused about the penalty for driving too slowly. To help drivers steer clear of fines, Confused.com has partnered with GoSafe to bust common myths and clear up any confusions.
Speeding is an offence that most drivers will commit at some point, even if they aren’t aware of it. In fact, nearly four in five (79%) drivers admit to breaking the speed limit in the past. While more than half (54%) claim they didn’t realise they were doing it, more than a quarter (28%) knowingly broke the speed limit to overtake another car. One in four (25%) even admit to speeding because they were running late.
Despite so many people committing the offence, more than half (52%) of UK drivers don’t think its acceptable to speed under any circumstance. However, almost a third (30%) of motorists think it’s okay to speed in an emergency, and one in eight (12%) think it’s fine if there aren’t any other cars on the road. This could explain why there were so many speeding offences during the 2020 lockdown. In fact, more than a quarter (28%) of UK drivers think people are more likely to speed at the moment because roads are quieter. But according to FOI data obtained in 2020, 44% of speed cameras are switched on either permanently or temporarily, so drivers are more likely to get caught than they think(3).
But regardless of the circumstances, speeding is an extremely dangerous offence which puts a lot of people at risk. And according to Confused.com’s research, there are many ways it has affected offenders. More than two in five (42%) drivers have been caught speeding at one point, and of these, one in seven (15%) claim their life was affected as a result, including losing their job. A third (31%) also claimed their car insurance has increased since being caught.
While quieter roads might seem like a safe opportunity to ramp up the speed, it’s clear the consequences certainly far outweigh the benefit of getting home that little bit quicker.
