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| 'Common sense' plea over ambulance speeding fines | 'Common sense' plea over ambulance speeding fines |
| (about 7 hours later) | |
| Ambulance trusts spent hundreds of hours having to appeal against speeding fines issued to emergency vehicles by police forces. | |
| More than 20,000 tickets were issued to paramedics after they were caught on speed cameras responding to 999 calls. | More than 20,000 tickets were issued to paramedics after they were caught on speed cameras responding to 999 calls. |
| Only 400 of those tickets were upheld, a Freedom of Information request by the BBC has found. | Only 400 of those tickets were upheld, a Freedom of Information request by the BBC has found. |
| The police said some speed cameras only captured the speed and number plate of the vehicle. | The police said some speed cameras only captured the speed and number plate of the vehicle. |
| Health bosses have called for the automatic exemption on emergency vehicles to be better enforced. Some trust staff are spending 40 hours a month appealing against the fines. | Health bosses have called for the automatic exemption on emergency vehicles to be better enforced. Some trust staff are spending 40 hours a month appealing against the fines. |
| A Freedom of Information request by the BBC to all ambulance trusts in England showed they received 23,227 speeding tickets between 2009-2014. | A Freedom of Information request by the BBC to all ambulance trusts in England showed they received 23,227 speeding tickets between 2009-2014. |
| If not appealed against, some trusts would be facing a bill of up to £160,000 a year. | |
| Yorkshire Ambulance Service Trust had to appeal against fines that would amount to more than £774,000 over five years, while the South Central Ambulance Service Trust, covering Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire and Oxfordshire, spent up to 10 hours a week appealing against the fines. | |
| The highest speed recorded was 115mph in a 50mph zone by the South Western Ambulance Service. | The highest speed recorded was 115mph in a 50mph zone by the South Western Ambulance Service. |
| Appeal process: | Appeal process: |
| 'Common sense' | 'Common sense' |
| Carl Rees, from the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives, said "common sense should be applied" and "notices should only be sent out if no blue lights can be seen flashing". | Carl Rees, from the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives, said "common sense should be applied" and "notices should only be sent out if no blue lights can be seen flashing". |
| "After the appropriate checks have been made the PCN (penalty charge notice) should be waived. We understand that this is what happens in the majority of cases," he said. | "After the appropriate checks have been made the PCN (penalty charge notice) should be waived. We understand that this is what happens in the majority of cases," he said. |
| The law: | The law: |
| Section 87 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 states: | Section 87 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 states: |
| Source: "Guidance regarding the legal obligations placed on forces as body corporate when dealing with speeding and red light offences by emergency service vehicles" | Source: "Guidance regarding the legal obligations placed on forces as body corporate when dealing with speeding and red light offences by emergency service vehicles" |
| Association of Chief Police Officer of England, Wales and Northern Ireland | Association of Chief Police Officer of England, Wales and Northern Ireland |
| Assistant Chief Constable Stephen Barry, from the National Police Chiefs' Council, said while police would generally stop notices from being sent out, this is more difficult since the introduction of average speed checks. | Assistant Chief Constable Stephen Barry, from the National Police Chiefs' Council, said while police would generally stop notices from being sent out, this is more difficult since the introduction of average speed checks. |
| "When an emergency vehicle clearly displaying blue lights triggers a camera, but the police can see that it was being driven safely in accordance with the law with blue lights displayed, they would generally stop notices from being sent out. | "When an emergency vehicle clearly displaying blue lights triggers a camera, but the police can see that it was being driven safely in accordance with the law with blue lights displayed, they would generally stop notices from being sent out. |
| "This has been made more difficult with the introduction of average speed checks in recent years, which usually capture the speed and number plate of the vehicle but not necessarily an image." | "This has been made more difficult with the introduction of average speed checks in recent years, which usually capture the speed and number plate of the vehicle but not necessarily an image." |