Driven on the wrong road, very worried please help?
Hi,
I recently passed and it was my first car trip to the birmingham town centre, i got confused by so many signs, that I took the wrong turn on the road (road markings said no turning left) but i turned left and met the traffic coming from opposite direction, the bus driver was nice and gave me way and time to turn the car around.
i am now worried, because it was a bad mistake and i will get points i think because i am very scared, i never thought i would ever break the law.
i went back to the road and saw these two cameras on tall blue pole, I am not sure which cameras are these for and whether i will get a penalty ticket.
your help and word means a lot,
thanks.
IMAGE ATTACHED OF THE CAMERA
I recently passed and it was my first car trip to the birmingham town centre, i got confused by so many signs, that I took the wrong turn on the road (road markings said no turning left) but i turned left and met the traffic coming from opposite direction, the bus driver was nice and gave me way and time to turn the car around.
i am now worried, because it was a bad mistake and i will get points i think because i am very scared, i never thought i would ever break the law.
i went back to the road and saw these two cameras on tall blue pole, I am not sure which cameras are these for and whether i will get a penalty ticket.
your help and word means a lot,
thanks.
IMAGE ATTACHED OF THE CAMERA
These camera look like pedestrian CCTV cameras rather than traffic cameras. One of them is clearly pointing to a pedestrian footpath. Of course, there is always a chance they may traffic cameras but I think you are worrying unnecessarily at this time. People make mistakes, I would not worry too much about this.
They are not traffic cameras. They are CCTV cameras. Of course technically CCTV cameras could be used as evidence in relation to a motoring offence, but these cameras will not automatically take pictures for use in sending out NIPs (Notice of Intended Prosecution).
Just for information purposes, if this incident was witnessed, either by a police officer at the time or subsequently on CCTV and the decision has been taken to prosecute you, the first step is that you (or the registered keeper of the vehicle, if that isn't you) will receive a NIP in the post asking you to provide details of the driver at the time of the incident. It is a separate and more serious offence to not provide that information. Chances are you will then receive an offer of a fixed penalty notice, being a fine and three points.
However, in my view it's extremely unlikely that that will happen. You made an honest mistake and no harm was done. I really can't imagine any police officer either witnessing that incident or viewing the footage deciding to prosecute you in these circumstances. I might be wrong of course, but I doubt you have anything to worry about.
Fortunately though there will come a point where you'll know for certain whether or not anything will come of this. NIPs must be issued within 14 days of the date of the offence, though in practice most are received in about 7 days. If you have not received a NIP within a few days (to take into account postage time) of the incident, you will not be prosecuted for it and you can set your mind to rest about the whole thing. If you do happen to receive a NIP that was issued more than 14 days after the incident, you can defend the prosecution on that basis.
On a side note, whilst I fully understand how you must feel being in this situation as a new driver with best intentions, you have to realise that everyone makes mistakes. There is a decent chance that you will get points on your licence at some stage. Even relatively careful and 'safe' drivers do. It doesn't mean that you're a bad driver or a criminal. Having three points on your licence for speeding or a similar minor offence is unlikely to affect your premiums significantly once you've accrued a few years experience, and you have to commit a number of offences in a relatively short space of time to risk a ban or similar. So really, try not to worry about it. It's not the end of the world even if you do get points for this.
Just for information purposes, if this incident was witnessed, either by a police officer at the time or subsequently on CCTV and the decision has been taken to prosecute you, the first step is that you (or the registered keeper of the vehicle, if that isn't you) will receive a NIP in the post asking you to provide details of the driver at the time of the incident. It is a separate and more serious offence to not provide that information. Chances are you will then receive an offer of a fixed penalty notice, being a fine and three points.
However, in my view it's extremely unlikely that that will happen. You made an honest mistake and no harm was done. I really can't imagine any police officer either witnessing that incident or viewing the footage deciding to prosecute you in these circumstances. I might be wrong of course, but I doubt you have anything to worry about.
Fortunately though there will come a point where you'll know for certain whether or not anything will come of this. NIPs must be issued within 14 days of the date of the offence, though in practice most are received in about 7 days. If you have not received a NIP within a few days (to take into account postage time) of the incident, you will not be prosecuted for it and you can set your mind to rest about the whole thing. If you do happen to receive a NIP that was issued more than 14 days after the incident, you can defend the prosecution on that basis.
On a side note, whilst I fully understand how you must feel being in this situation as a new driver with best intentions, you have to realise that everyone makes mistakes. There is a decent chance that you will get points on your licence at some stage. Even relatively careful and 'safe' drivers do. It doesn't mean that you're a bad driver or a criminal. Having three points on your licence for speeding or a similar minor offence is unlikely to affect your premiums significantly once you've accrued a few years experience, and you have to commit a number of offences in a relatively short space of time to risk a ban or similar. So really, try not to worry about it. It's not the end of the world even if you do get points for this.
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