Biggest change in traffic policing for decades

27th September 2013

New fixed penalty notices for careless driving offences such as middle lane hogging came into effect during August.

The Institute of Advanced Motorists advises that you don’t have to inconvenience other road users to be issued with a ticket – in-vehicle distractions that cause you to swerve or drive badly could also lead to a £100 fine and three penalty points.

Typical examples of careless driving include:

• Overtaking on the inside.
• Driving inappropriately close to another vehicle.
• Inadvertently driving through a red light.
• Emerging from a side road into the path of another vehicle.
• Tuning a car radio, when the driver was avoidably distracted by this action.
• Selecting and lighting a cigarette or similar when the driver was avoidably distracted by that use.

“If the police target the worst and most persistent offenders this could be good news for road safety,” IAM chief executive Simon Best said.  “If, however, it becomes another numbers game with thousands of careless driving tickets issued then the impact will be limited.  The IAM believes driver retraining courses have a much bigger potential to improve poor driving than simply issuing a standard fine and should always be offered as the first stage of prosecution.”