Fastest way to escape the hated camera trap

Next time you are dashing about in your car you’ll probably be keeping one eye on your speedometer and the other on the road. Unless of course you’ve taken out the latest – and rather controversial – insurance cover that lets you drive safe in the knowledge that even if you lose your licence for speeding, you will still be able to get around.

For a yearly premium, LicenceGuard, underwritten by Isle of Man Assurance, will reimburse you for travel costs each month for an entire year if you lose your driving licence through points which have totted up because of speeding.

“We designed the product in response to the ever-increasing speed traps which mean many motorists are now becoming victim to the reality that they could lose their licence from points totting up,” says Mark Priestman, product development manager at LicenceGuard. “A lot of people need transport to be able to work and would be placed under a lot of pressure if they could no longer get around with their car.”

He said the rapid rise of roadside speed cameras – there are now 8,000 number plate recognition cameras and 6,000 speed cameras – means that one in four households has a driver with at least one conviction, say three points for speeding. There are also nearly 1m people who are only one conviction away from losing their licence.

Over the years motorists have taken desperate measures to hang on to their licences. Some have fitted radar detector devices that plug into the cigarette lighter socket. These can provide visual and audible alerts at the approach of speed cameras. Some drivers have also been known to swap points, whereby people illegally get a partner or friend to admit to a speeding offence.

Despite these wheezes, the number of people losing their licence because of speeding is likely to grow. Recent research from Churchill Car Insurance reveals that 4m motorists confess to breaking the speed limit every time they get behind the wheel. A
further 8m admit to speeding each time they drive on the motorway.

The report shows that increasing numbers of speed cameras, variable speed limits, fines or bans are having little impact on Britons’ need for speed with as many as 80 per cent of convicted speeders saying they haven’t changed their behaviour following a fine or even after a driving ban has been lifted.

Frances Browning, spokeswoman at Churchill Car Insurance, says the product from LicenceGuard was unlikely to help to prevent speeding.

“Speeding doesn’t carry the same social taboo as drink driving, but can have serious consequences. More drivers need to be more aware that speeding is not simply a minor offence, but instead a major cause of road fatalities. We would prefer to see motorists driving responsibly, rather than insuring them against getting a ban.”

It is also worth remembering before you speed off in your car that it’s not just the speeding fine that hits motorists in the pocket, but also the nasty hike in their insurance premiums as a result of penalty points. Drivers who are caught on speed cameras could see their insurance premiums rocket by up to 20 per cent, even if they have a previously unblemished driving record.

Ian Crowder, AA spokesman, says: “If you are a customer and you get a new driving conviction, it is unlikely that your current insurer will turn you down for a new policy. However, you might find that when it comes to shopping around, a number of firms will refuse to cover you. Speed kills and that is why insurance companies will push up your premium if you are caught by a speed
camera.”

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