Help please - received summons

[smoggii]

I have just received a court summons for speeding and failing to provide information about the driver.
The offence happened in August in Warwickshire (I live in a different county) but we were in Warwickshire at that time for our anniversary - so chances are one of us is guilty of the first offence.
However, this is the first I've heard of it, i didn't get the notice the police are referring to.
I am being asked to plead guilty or not guilty.
It was so long ago I have no idea if me or DH was driving and i can't be guilty of failing to give info i didn't know i had been asked for...can i

Really freaked out. Help please

Phone up and speak to someone. Ask them to proove you recieved the first notice.

Indicate a not guilty plea. You cannot be guilty of the offence if you did not receive the NIP (Notice of Intended Prosecution) which would have been a letter to the registered keeper of the vehicle asking you to provide details of who was driving.

You will receive a date for the hearing and there will be a short trial (takes 5 minutes or so) you will need to give evidence on oath that you did. It receive the NIP. If you live in shared accommodation, have a mail redirection service or any other reason for difficulty re receiving mail you would explain this. If the magistrate(s) believe you you will be found not guilty.

Sorry on iPhone - you will need to give evidence that you did not receive the NIP

If the NIP was sent by first class post you may be able to argue that you did not receive it, although it may be difficult to convince the court unless you can show why it was not received. If it was sent by recorded delivery or registered post you are assumed to have received it even if you did not.

It may be worth ringing them and telling them you did not receive the NIP.

Thank you, i guess all i can do is tell the truth and hope they don't give me 6 pts and £1000 fine.

I would never have not filled in the form if i received it, wouldn't take that sort of risk.

You would be able to give evidence that you did not receive the NIP by post, but the magistrates will be asked to consider the Crown's evidence, which should be a copy of the letter and evidence of first class post to the registered keeper's address. They may accept that as evidence of good service. These problems often arise when the DVLA is not notified of a change of address, or where the car is a company or rental car. When you get to court, ask to speak to the legal adviser, (whose job it is to assist you if you decide to plead not guilty) and she may also speak to the prosecutor. In my experience many prosecutors will accept a plea to the original charge of speeding if the defendant says they would have pleaded guilty had they received the letter, which means 3 points, not six. As in your OP you seem content that one of you was guilty of speeding, that may be a way forward if the speeder is also the registered keeper. But as others have said, if you tell the truth about receiving the letter, you may be believed, but on the other hand, sadly, you may not, as this defence is used quite frequently and not everyone tells the truth, unfortunately.

Before you return the Court Requisition pleading guilty / not guilty, it might be worth calling the Traffic Criminal Justice Unit who are prosecuting you. Their name should be on the Court Requisition and you'll be able to find a telephone number or email address online. You should explain to them that you didn't receive the NIP. If it was an oversight on their part they might send it out to you and allow you to receive points and pay the fine, avoiding the court process. This happened to my DH (he definitely did not receive an NIP) and I'm pretty sure this was how we resolved it.