Motor Fines

kingtut

Hi,

Firstly apologies if I put this in the wrong place....

Can anyone tell me what the fine / penalty is for your first speeding fine? My friend got pulled for it over the weekend and claims that the police just took his details and said he would get a letter. This sounds kinda suss to me so I'm just wondering if anyone knows..he is kinda clueless hence the reason why I am doing the searching for him :rolleyes:

smashey

Sounds like two penalty points and €80 fine.

Gregor Samsa

kingtut wrote: »

Can anyone tell me what the fine / penalty is for your first speeding fine?

Two penalty points and an €80 fine is the standard penalty for non-contested* speeding, there's no distinction between first and subsequent offences.

If the Garda said he'd be getting a letter, then it'll be a letter telling him to pay an €80 by such a date, and that 2 points will be put on his licence on payment. (Failing to pay in time means going to court, where that 2 points can be upped to 4.)

The letter might not arrive for a few months.

* If you contest the change in court and fail, the points get upped to 4. The way this is presented is that you get a 2 point discount for not contesting.

Alanstrainor

Moved from Learning to Drive.

Voodoomelon

This happened me a few weeks ago, still waiting on the letter.

I had the cruise control set to 120kmph on the M1, got stuck behind a truck so went to overtake, only to see another car in the outside lane. I turned the indicator off, but the car started flashing me to overtake so I put the foot down, overtook the truck and the car infront and went back to the slow lane.

Garda car was on me in 30 seconds, pulled me over. Gits.

Savman

Voodoomelon wrote: »

This happened me a few weeks ago, still waiting on the letter.

I had the cruise control set to 120kmph on the M1, got stuck behind a truck so went to overtake, only to see another car in the outside lane. I turned the indicator off, but the car started flashing me to overtake so I put the foot down, overtook the truck and the car infront and went back to the slow lane.

Garda car was on me in 30 seconds, pulled me over. Gits.

Regardless of the ethics of speeding tickets and motorways, you should be more worried about how you let someone else influence your driving so easily.

Voodoomelon

I don't follow, who wouldn't have pulled out? I had intended to, and the other driver prompted me to, I don't see your point.

Anan1

Voodoomelon wrote: »

I don't follow, who wouldn't have pulled out? I had intended to, and the other driver prompted me to, I don't see your point.

I wouldn't have, mainly because I wouldn't want to be anywhere near the kind of driver who'd flash to let me out in front of them in the overtaking lane. Mind you, I wouldn't have gone to overtake, or even indicated, without checking that the overtaking lane was clear either. Nor, for that matter, would I blame the Guards when I get pulled for speeding.;)

Voodoomelon

She was in my blind spot behind the rear pillar, its a big car. I was merely describing how unfortunate I was, I had driven from Dublin some 40 miles at 120kmph to just outside Dundalk, dont tell me you wouldn't be pissed...

Anan1

You're right, I wouldn't be happy either. Difference is, I wouldn't try to blame the Guards - i'd be annoyed with myself for not having seen them in time.

Voodoomelon

Ach sure right or wrong you're always gonna call them gits.
He must have been up on a bridge, no clue where he came from.

Anan1

Voodoomelon wrote: »

Ach sure right or wrong you're always gonna call them gits.

Touché.:D

Savman

Voodoomelon wrote: »

Ach sure right or wrong you're always gonna call them gits.

uh huh

kingtut

Voodoomelon wrote: »

This happened me a few weeks ago, still waiting on the letter.

I had the cruise control set to 120kmph on the M1, got stuck behind a truck so went to overtake, only to see another car in the outside lane. I turned the indicator off, but the car started flashing me to overtake so I put the foot down, overtook the truck and the car infront and went back to the slow lane.

Garda car was on me in 30 seconds, pulled me over. Gits.

What was your fine? 80 euro and 2 penalty points? I don't know if my friend got a letter but I must ask him. What are you going to do if you do not get a letter?

Honey-ec

kingtut wrote: »

What are you going to do if you do not get a letter?

Nothing, because he'll have gotten away with it.

It can take ages for the notice to arrive, though. Think they've something like 6 months from the date of the offence to issue it.

kingtut

Honey-ec wrote: »

Nothing, because he'll have gotten away with it.

It can take ages for the notice to arrive, though. Think they've something like 6 months from the date of the offence to issue it.

My friend said he had 28 days to pay though or was that 28 days to get the letter? I'm confused and my friend is going nuts lol.

Honey-ec

kingtut wrote: »

My friend said he had 28 days to pay though or was that 28 days to get the letter? I'm confused and my friend is going nuts lol.

It's 28 days to pay the fine once the notice is issued.

Voodoomelon

kingtut wrote: »

What was your fine? 80 euro and 2 penalty points? I don't know if my friend got a letter but I must ask him. What are you going to do if you do not get a letter?

I have no idea what the fine is, but its gonna be €80 anyways. It's been 2.5 weeks now and no sign of it. I live in hope.

What happens by the way if their system says the letter was issued, but I never got it? How can you contest that you never got it? Or is the responsibility with you to go to a Garda station after a reasonable amount of time?

Stephen

Speeding cases get thrown out all the time because the defendants claim they never got the notice in the post, which is quite possible, since they don't send them by registered post. Not unless something has changed recently anyway.

Voodoomelon

Hmm, nice one. You have a source on that?

Lumen

My (minor) speeding case was thrown out of district court because the Garda witness failed to attend.

Sometimes all it takes to succeed in life is to turn up.

cashmni1

The courts are full of people who "say" that they never got the letter. You have to swear on the Bible that you are telling the truth and you ever received the fixed penalty notice.

If you do not get the letter, you will get a summons by your local guard to appear in court (at least 7 days) before your court appearance.

If you genuinely do not get the letter, go to court and tell the judge that you didn't get a fixed penalty notice. The case will be thrown out.

Depending on a guard o to show up in court is a bit like Russian roulette, great when it works, sh1te when it doesn't.

All this with the day off work blah blah and you might just find it easier to pay the 80 snots and take the 2 points, especially if it is your first 2. ^Everyone (normal) has a couple of points.
I wouldn't worry about it too much.




^clip clop clip clop.....

Seth Brundle

Voodoomelon wrote: »

She was in my blind spot behind the rear pillar, its a big car. I was merely describing how unfortunate I was, I had driven from Dublin some 40 miles at 120kmph to just outside Dundalk, dont tell me you wouldn't be pissed...

She was in your blind spot for an entire journey?
Assuming she wasn't then this means that she drove up towards you and you didn't see her which means that you don't use your mirrors properly (which was the accusation levied against you earlier!)!

Voodoomelon

She was behind me for a while, I failed to see her move into the fast lane behind the rear pillar, where she sat for at least 5 seconds doing the same speed as me. Quick, take me off the road, i'm obviously the most dangerous driver out there!

My fine arrived today anyway, €80.
How long do points last on your licence?

smashey

Voodoomelon wrote: »

My fine arrived today anyway, €80.
How long do points last on your licence?

3 years.

craichoe

From http://www.penaltypoints.ie

Q. How many penalty points will I get if I am caught speeding?

A. The number of penalty points applicable to speeding is 4, if you are found guilty in a court of a speeding offence. The maximum fine for a first offence is €800. If on the other hand, you opt to pay the fixed charge of €80 within 28 days of the issue of the Fixed Charge notice from the Gardaí, you are effectively pleading no contest and 2 points will be endorsed on your licence record. If you pay within the second 28-day period, the fixed charge increases to €120, and the number of points endorsed remains at 2.

http://www.penaltypoints.ie/the_full_list_of_offences.php

kingtut

Voodoomelon wrote: »

She was behind me for a while, I failed to see her move into the fast lane behind the rear pillar, where she sat for at least 5 seconds doing the same speed as me. Quick, take me off the road, i'm obviously the most dangerous driver out there!

My fine arrived today anyway, €80.
How long do points last on your licence?

So the letter says you got an €80 fine and 2 penalty points ?

Seth Brundle

Voodoomelon wrote: »

She was behind me for a while, I failed to see her move into the fast lane behind the rear pillar, where she sat for at least 5 seconds doing the same speed as me. Quick, take me off the road, i'm obviously the most dangerous driver out there!

There is no fast lane on the M1. There is, however, an overtaking lane!

Voodoomelon wrote: »

My fine arrived today anyway, €80.
How long do points last on your licence?

Once you pay the fine and accept the charge (i.e. by not contesting it by going to court), then you will receive a further letter informing you that the points have been applied to your licence and will last for three years from the date they were applied (and not the date of the offence).