MOTORISTS are being stripped of their licences at a record 629 a day as more people fall prey to the state’s draconian traffic laws.

Demerit points were a major reason behind the 229,710 lost licences in 2008, as growing numbers of speeding drivers were caught by fixed cameras, especially in school zones.

An astonishing 60,919 motorists last year lost the right to drive after running out of demerit points, documents released under Freedom of Information show.

Read: How losing demerit points could cost one Sydney driver her job

This was a 50 per cent jump on the 2007 figure of 40,437 and almost double the number (33,778) just two years ago.

It was a massive increase since 2003, when lost demerit points accounted for only 16,805 drivers forced off the road.

As well as school zones, where speeding carries a minimum four-point penalty, one more than usual, double demerit periods enforced around public holidays also took their toll.

As the NRMA demanded a fairer deal for motorists, The Daily Telegraph can reveal Roads Minister Michael Daley is dithering on a promise made last year to reduce demerit points on low-range speeding offences.

More than 80 per cent of drivers detected speeding were in the low-range category, exceeding the limit by less than 15km/h.

Mr Daley told The Telegraph on November 14 last year that the three demerit points would be reduced to one.

"I’ll be coming back with a comprehensive proposal to make motoring fairer for people in NSW," Mr Daley said.

But a spokesman for Mr Daley on Friday - four months later - would not say when the promise would be implemented.

"It’s continuing but nothing has happened yet," he said.

Today, apparently spurred on by publication of this story, Mr Daley said the government will make an announcement "within days" about reducing demerit points for minor speeding offences. Read his words here.

NRMA president Wendy Machin said the Government needed to implement a fairer system.

The organisation last year surveyed 560 businesses in NSW and the ACT and found 23 per cent had put drivers off the road after they lost licences through demerits.

The NRMA wants the number of demerit points for offences less than 15 km/h over the limit to be reduced, demerit points to be returned to drivers when the fine is waived by a magistrate, and rewards for motorists with excellent driving records.

Ms Machin said visible policing - not fixed speed cameras - was the most effective way to slow motorists down.

Another contributor to the number of licences suspended and cancelled last year was aggressive action by the State Debt Recovery Office against fine defaulters.

Fine defaulters accounted for 106,596 drivers being put off the road, the FOI documents showed.

Criminal defence lawyer Dennis Moralis, of Nyman Gibson Stewart, said last night the increasing number of fixed speed cameras were behind the lost demerit points. "A lot of it is due to holiday blitzes," Mr Moralis said.

The hard pressed UK motorist is, and always will be considered a soft target in the eyes of the individual, the law and the numerous motoring associations. And not without good reason.

Any rise in the cost of oil prices is almost immediately passed on to the motorist at the petrol pumps. Every budget offers the chancellor another opportunity to raise the cost of the Road Fund Licence (car tax), and, although insurance companies are currently cutting each other’s throats to offer us cheaper cover, they’ll fight you all the way should you be unlucky enough to have to make a claim.

Then there are congestion charges, wheel clamping campaigns and ever increasing parking fees to contend with, especially near airports and in hospital car parks.

But, top of the list of all the motorist money squeezing opportunities is without a doubt, the speeding fine. Almost every driver will break the speed limit of some road at some time, either intentionally, due to some urgent ‘mission’, or most likely because of a momentary of lack of concentration.

There are currently than 5,400 static camera sites in the UK and just under 3,500 mobile speed units in operation, so just about anyone is likely to get caught at any given time. Unfortunately for some, they will get caught more than once, which could leave them in very precarious position concerning their future driving excursions.

It’s reported that almost a million motorists in the UK, are on the brink of facing a driving ban due to the 12 point totting up system. And with 2 million motorists falling victim to speed cameras and mobile units last year, there’s obviously no shortage of future potential disqualifications lying on the file.

Speeding fines can definitely cost you much, not just in money but in insurance points too, as the premiums will become more expensive once you have speeding tickets

on your record. However, given the fact that speed is the major cause of fatalities on roads, we should not wonder that the penalties are so drastic; it is probably the only way to make drivers obey the law in traffic.

People receive speeding fines when they are detected by speed devices such as fixed or mobile cameras or when a police officer stops them. Sometimes getting a speeding ticket is the fortunate case, since you can actually lose your driving license

for a pretty long period of time, and when you depend on driving to make a living things couldn’t simply get worse.

Besides the adjacent speeding fines you will have the license suspended for at least three months if you exceed the speed limit with thirty mph or for six months if you are running with forty-five miles over the speed limit. If the police stops you in any such situations, chances are that you will get the suspension right on the spot, and it will be usually useless to try and fight the ticket. Maybe you would get with just a warning for ten miles over the limit, but if it is more, nobody can help you.

With a simple search on the Internet you can find out the penalty points and the speeding fines specific to every state in particular. You will need to know the law not just when driving but in the eventuality of going to court too. In certain states the court will accept the speed to be reduced in the record so that you don’t get high insurance premiums, but this is not a rule. Such exceptions only happen when you have exceeded the speed limit with just a few miles.

The clerks in the courtroom will usually send you the information file with the categories for the speeding fines. They are also the employees who will take care of the documents you send or bring for the case, particularly if you are pleading not-guilty. Furthermore, some legal advice from an attorney could help one lower the speeding fines, but it very much depends on the way the case is pleaded in court. If you can get some delays, you could also increase your chances of beating the speeding ticket and get with a clean record.

There are no guarantees for how things may evolve in the case of New York speeding fines; yet, this holds true for any traffic law infringement no matter the state or the country. Traffic rule breaking is a common fact on every road, but from case to case, police officer face different challenges and individual specificity. Most usually, the consequence of getting New York speeding fines includes going to court; if you have a good lawyer you can manage to get away with your speeding ticket. If you give your lawyer the authority to appear in court on your behalf, you don’t even have to be present.

There are however some courts in New York that require the defendant’s presence for the trial as compulsory condition, nevertheless, such cases are pretty rare. New York speeding fines may result in points on your driving license, which on the long run will determine your insurance rates to go up. Hoping that the insurance company won’t find out is pretty stupid since very thorough checks are regularly performed. The best way to avoid such situations is to hire a lawyer to negotiate you a reduction, otherwise, according to the insurance laws you are good to pay. Therefore, it is highly important not to admit your guilt on the spot when the police officer writes down the facts of the law violation.

Out of state drivers are equally affected by New York speeding fines when it comes to the same insurance rates, since New York state reports about traffic violations are sent to the Drivers License Compact. The easiest and most common way to beat New York speeding fines is when the police officer does not appear in court. The main reason for fighting a ticket is that you already have some other points on the record and your insurance rates would get too high. A good deal negotiated by a traffic lawyer is definitely preferable to the trial.

To get you rid of the most basic New York fines, lawyers will charge around $500, but depending on the severity of the case and the amount of work that needs to be done, you may also pay $1,000 or even more. The number of points added to the license in case of speeding violations very much depends on how seriously you’ve exceeded the speed limit. You’ll get no less than eleven points for driving with forty mph over the speed limit; one more traffic problem and you get the maximum twelve point penalty that automatically brings the suspension of your license.

You don’t have to drive far to find a speed camera; mobile or fixed. Many are placed in accident ‘blackspot’ which have been proven to significantly reduce road accidents in these areas. However, some speed cameras are placed intentionally to catch-out road users. When a speed limit changes from national to 30mph, notice that mobile speed camera hidden to the side of the road? No it’s not just a white van taking a break. You’ve been caught doing way over 30mph!

So as road users what can we do to fight back? There are times when it’s wrong. Driving at 40pmh in a built up 30mph area is a criminal offence and as such; punishment should be accepted. But are these punishments ‘fair’? When speed cameras have been placed to deliberately catch unsuspecting road users, are these methods of catching road users ‘fair’?

In 2007 it was revealed that 69% of road users caught speeding were able to have their fines revoked. Proof that you can indeed appeal a speeding fine, and that a surprisingly high number of people are doing so successfully!

So what do you do when you receive your speed fine? If you get caught speeding or driving through a red traffic light by a camera you will receive a ‘Notice of Intended Prosecution’ within 14 days of the offence being committed. This notification is sent to the registered keeper of the vehicle. The notification will ask the owner to identify the driver of the vehicle at the time of the offence. The minimum fine for speeding or passing through a red traffic light is £60 and three points on your licence.

If you are the driver and you accept the prosecution you may receive a conditional offer of a fixed penalty fine. This means you will not have to appear in court, you just have to pay the fine.

Sounds fairly simple so far? But what if you want to appeal?

If you intend to challenge the penalty i.e. you feel there are circumstances that should be taken into consideration to appeal the penalty you can apply to go to court and be issued with a summons. You can then give your reasons for disputing the speeding fine and the evidence you want to be taken into consideration by the court on the summons. If you do appear in court the magistrates will decide your final outcome; but bear-in-mind they can revoke, reduce or even increase your penalty and points.

One of the biggest problems that motorists face is a lack of information and communication when preparing their court case appealing a speeding fine. Some road users never even make it as far as appealing their speeding ticket due to lack of help, support and advice. Luckily a new website has been launched to help those in need of advice on how to appeal their speeding fine. UKSpeeding.com offers a comprehensive guide to appealing a speeding fine, including information and examples of successful appeals.

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