Speed awareness course

[Christmassydecs]

I’m so upset to have received notice in the post that I drove at 43mph in a 30mph zone. No excuses, I did it and I’m thoroughly ashamed. It wasn’t a built up area but a country road in Cumbria I’ve never previously driven on and I missed any 30 sign. I’m normally a very careful driver and reached age 69 trouble free.

Has anyone attended a speed awareness course as an alternative to licence points and is it a theory test or more listening to talks? I’m not sure if I’ll be eligible to take the course option as from what I’ve read the cut off point is up to 42mph in a 30 zone. I was recorded doing 43mph. Does anyone know if the 42mph is set in stone or if there is room for discretion?

I'm 67 and have done three of these courses over the last 15 years. Mine have never been run by police officers. It's usually just a couple of personable blokes who obviously do these sorts of courses for a living. They're usually very interesting and quite informative with a lot of videos and photos. At the end, you have to do a test but it's multiple choice and you'd have to be thick as shit to fail.

The most common excuse in court is that people didn’t realise they were speeding

So driving without due care and attention then. Fair enough. There's a penalty for that too,

how old are you op?

I'm 67 and have done three of these courses over the last 15 years.

So not the greatest advert for their effectiveness then ....

It's more the speeding self important dickheads who don't give enough of a fuck about the lives and wellbeing of others surely?

Well to be fair their journeys are more important.

Several signs near where I live get quite covered with greenery. So can be quite easy not to see them.

I usually have satnav on, but that can be wildly out of date - one 20mph stretch near me is labelled as 60 on my satnav! I never trust it (not saying anyone else has used that as an excuse).

I've got my course next month and I'm attending in person as it is being held next to a shopping centre I haven't been to for ages. I'm quite looking forward to it after reading this thread. I was doing 38 in a 30 limit in a village which has regular police traps. I just wasn't thinking. I now drive through there at 29 with the speed limiter on and a huge procession of cars following me.

Anyway you asked about letters. You will get the first one to confirm you were driving the car and then the next one will give you your options. If it's Kent Police this will take weeks. I was caught in September and the earliest course I was offered is January.

Several signs near where I live get quite covered with greenery. So can be quite easy not to see them.

If you can prove that - basically that the signage did not meet the requirements of the law - then you would have a valid reason to go to court (bearing in mind the cost if you lose) and argue the fine is not valid. Something which a decent dashcam might help with

However, they do try to teach you little tips to prevent being blindsided by missing or obscured signs on the SAC.

I was way over 55 in a 40. Speed Awareness Course offered as it was first offence.

I thought it was excellent. I actually think it should be mandatory, for all drivers, I learnt a lot, I've been driving since the 90s.

I actually think it should be mandatory, for all drivers,

I agree. Every 10 years. £100* (so £10/year) that would be easily recouped in lower premiums through less accidents. (Although I admit it is naive to believe that insurance premiums are related to risk anymore).

*My course was £80 if I recall correctly.

They had also did a comparison between going at a steady (legal) speed from Bristol to London and going at 80 and they found the lower was cheaper (less fuel) AND quicker as you only had to stop for fuel once

That sounds like utter nonsense!

You won't be offered a course. I only just got offered it 41 in a 30

I think it’s relevant. He’s saying he wasn’t intentionally being a dick.

The bit about stopping for fuel does - surely you'd fill your tank before you set off?

69

That's not correct. Mine was online. I was given a choice of dates and picked one.

It is. You can do Bristol to London and back on a tank and still have plenty left to drive around. It's about 250 miles return and my tank does 500. Plus there is the wonderful Gloucester services which is a must.

Yes...which is why I said "in person". As in, you have to attend "live" and can't just do it at 2am or whatever.

Oh, I see.

Can you explain ? Generally the power envelopes of car ICEs form a profile where the most power/fuel area is where the gearing delivers 50-60mph. About 20-30% more efficient than if you push into the 70+ mph zone.

Most cars these days have a trip computer that can display instantaneous and average fuel economy statistics. Quite illuminating if you are a big fan of not wasting money.

To paraphrase Jack Dee: "Depends how big your fucking tank is."

I did a course during the first lock down, speed camera got me doing 32 in a 30 zone (the sort of myth around the 10% figure was mentioned, but it’s up to the Force). I would say opt for a zoom course if you get the chance. There’s no way I would have wanted to be in the same room as some of the charmers my course deliverer had to deal with, I think a couple were told off for inattention and simply failed the course. It’s instructive, and intelligent rather than belligerent folks do benefit. It was my first speeding ticket in 42 years of driving, and utterly my fault for being inattentive. Better than a fine.

Exactly. Nobody’s stopping multiple times for fuel on a 120 mile journey. If we actually consider the kind of journeys which may mean stopping for fuel then it still makes sense to do 80. On a 500 mile journey you’ll have 50 mins in hand for that extra stop. I’ve done journeys which required fuel stops every 1hr45 whilst really pressing on, annoying to have to stop so often but the time savings easily paid off.

have you had a sight test recently?