Drive Protect does not condone excessive speeding; but acknowledges that drivers do exceed speed limits.

We aim to help those who have been unfairly treated or who have made a genuine mistake and rely on their ability to drive for ‘normal’ living. The ability to escape prosecution should not be the preserve of the wealthy.

According to the Royal Society for Prevention of Accidents

January 2011

Inappropriate speed contributes to around 14% of all injury collisions, 15% of crashes resulting in a serious injury and 24% of collisions which result in a death and are recorded by the police. This includes both ‘excessive speed’, when the speed limit is exceeded but also driving or riding within the speed limit when this is too fast for the conditions at the time (for example, in poor weather, poor visibility or high pedestrian activity).

In 2010, 241 people were killed in crashes involving someone exceeding the speed limit and a further 180 people died when someone was travelling too fast for the conditions.

Around two-thirds of crashes in which people are killed or injured occur on roads with a speed limit of 30 mph or less.

Who Speeds?

The DfT 2009 Speed Survey showed that:

  • On 30 mph roads, 46% of car drivers exceed 30 mph and 16% exceed 35 mph
  • On 40 mph roads, one quarter (22%) of car drivers speed, and 8% go faster than 45 mph
  • On 60 mph roads, 8% of drivers speed but only 1% go over 70 mph
  • On 70 mph dual carriageways, almost half of car drivers (42%) exceed the speed limit, with 10% going over 80 mph
  • On motorways, half (50%) of car drivers exceed the speed limit, with 14% going faster than 80 mph.

Recent research suggests there are three types of drivers:

  • Compliant drivers who usually observe speed limits (52% of drivers)
  • Moderate speeders who occasionally exceed speed limits (33% of drivers)
  • Excessive speeders who routinely exceed speed limits (14% of drivers)

However, even the moderate speeders exceed 30 mph limits fairly regularly. Excessive speeders normally ignore the 30 mph limit, and often by a wide margin.

The DfT presents statistics on personal injury accidents in the year ending March 2011 on public roads (including footways) in Great Britain, which became known to the police within 30 days.

2011 include:

  • There were 1,870 people killed and 24,770 killed or seriously injured (KSI), in reported road accidents in the year ending March 2011. This represents a fall of 10 and 5 per cent respectively compared to the previous 12 month period.
  • There were 208,150 casualties (slight injuries, serious injuries and fatalities), 5 per cent less than the year ending March 2010.
  • Total reported child casualties (ages 0-15) fell by 3 per cent to 19,810 with those killed or seriously injured down 4 per cent (2,510), compared with the year ending March 2010.
  • The number of injury road accidents reported to the police fell by 5 per cent (to 154,030) and the number of fatal accidents by 8 per cent (to 1,770) compared with the 12-month period ending March 2010.
  • Motor vehicle traffic levels fell by 0.7 per cent compared to the 12 month period ending March 2010.