Notices of intended prosecution
General information about speeding and other motoring notices sent by the police in England and Wales. These are criminal matters, and the important decisions should be made with a motoring solicitor.
What we cannot advise on
Appeal Specialists does not advise on how to answer a section 172 request, whether to name a driver, whether to accept a fixed penalty or a course, pleas, or court proceedings. For any of those, speak to a motoring solicitor before the deadline on your paperwork. You can find one through the Law Society's Find a Solicitor service.
Published 16 October 2026.
What a notice of intended prosecution is
Section 1 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 applies to a list of offences that includes speeding, careless and dangerous driving, and failing to comply with certain traffic signs. For those offences, a person usually cannot be convicted unless one of these happened:
- they were warned at the time of the offence that prosecution would be considered;
- a summons for the offence was served on them within 14 days; or
- a notice of intended prosecution (NIP) was served within 14 days of the offence on them or on the registered keeper of the vehicle.
For camera offences, the NIP is usually posted to the registered keeper, often together with a section 172 request asking who was driving.
The 14-day rule
The notice must be served within 14 days. Section 1 allows it to be served by handing it over, by leaving it at the person's last known address, or by registered post, recorded delivery or first class post to that address.
- A notice sent by registered post or recorded delivery to the last known address is treated as served even if it is returned or not received.
- A notice sent by first class post is usually treated as served when it would be delivered in the ordinary course of post, generally the second business day after posting, unless something different is shown.
- The law presumes the requirement was met unless and until the contrary is proved.
- The 14 days apply to the first notice to the registered keeper. Where the keeper is a company or a hire or lease firm and names someone else as the driver, the notice that follows to that person does not usually have to arrive within the original 14 days.
The exceptions in section 2
Section 2 of the Act sets out situations where the notice requirement does not apply or does not prevent a conviction:
- where, at the time of the offence or immediately after it, an accident occurred owing to the presence of the vehicle on a road;
- where a fixed penalty notice was given or fixed for the offence; and
- where the court is satisfied that neither the name and address of the accused nor that of the registered keeper could, with reasonable diligence, have been found in time, or that the accused's own conduct contributed to the failure. This can arise, for example, where the address held by the DVLA was out of date.
Whether a notice was served in time, and what follows if it was not, are questions for a court. Do not assume that a notice which seems late means the case will not go ahead.
Section 172 requests
Under section 172 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, where the driver of a vehicle is alleged to have committed a relevant offence, the keeper must give any information about the identity of the driver that the police require. Anyone else must give any information in their power that may lead to the driver being identified.
The request must usually be answered within 28 days, beginning with the day on which it is served. Failing to comply is an offence in its own right. On conviction, the court must endorse the licence with 6 penalty points, and the maximum fine is £1,000. A company cannot receive points, so it can only be fined.
There are limited statutory defences, and whether one applies depends on the facts. We do not advise on how to answer a section 172 request. If you are unsure who was driving, or how to respond, speak to a motoring solicitor before the deadline.
Before you contact us
What you tell us is not protected by legal professional privilege, and it could be disclosed. Do not tell us who was driving, or anything else about the alleged offence. Send us only the notice, the envelope if you kept it, and the date it arrived.
Speed cameras and type approval
Section 20 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 allows evidence from a prescribed device, such as a speed camera, to be used in court. A record from the device is only admissible if the device is of a type approved by the Secretary of State, often called Home Office type approval, and any conditions of that approval were met. An approval can limit how and when a device may be used.
Where the prosecution relies on a certificate about the device's record, a copy must usually be served on the accused at least seven days before the hearing.
Type approval and calibration are matters of evidence. Asking for information about them is a normal part of understanding a case. It does not mean the evidence is unreliable, and any challenge to it is a matter for a solicitor and the court.
Fixed penalties and speed awareness courses
After the section 172 request is answered, the police usually send either an offer of a fixed penalty, an offer of a course, or papers telling the person to go to court. The minimum penalty for speeding is a £100 fine and 3 penalty points.
The police decide whether a speed awareness course is appropriate for a particular offence. A course is not usually offered to someone who has attended one in the previous three years. If a fixed penalty is not accepted, or the person pleads not guilty, the case goes to the magistrates' court, where a fine can be higher, more points can be imposed, and disqualification is possible.
We do not advise on whether to accept a fixed penalty or a course.
What we can do
- A written review of the notice's dates and paperwork against sections 1 and 2, before any proceedings start, so you can take it to a solicitor
- Draft requests for information, such as about the device and its approval, for you to check and send yourself
- Explain what each document you have received is
What we do not do
- Advise on answering a section 172 request or naming a driver
- Advise on fixed penalties, courses, pleas, mitigation or exceptional hardship
- Deal with a Single Justice Procedure notice, summons or postal requisition
- Contact the police, the prosecutor or the court on your behalf
- Represent you in the magistrates' court
Once a Single Justice Procedure notice, summons or postal requisition arrives, speak to a motoring solicitor.
Want the notice's timing reviewed?
Email a copy of the notice and the date it arrived, and nothing about who was driving. We will tell you whether a written review is worth doing before any proceedings start. See how to contact us. For council and private parking tickets, see parking and traffic penalties.
Our status
Appeal Specialists is an independent consultancy, not a law firm. We are not solicitors or barristers and we are not regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority or any other legal regulator, so you cannot complain about us to the Legal Ombudsman.
We provide non-reserved legal services only. We do not conduct litigation, file or serve court documents, or accept service of court documents for you. Where the law allows, we can speak for you at a small-claims hearing or a tribunal, but only with your agreement and, at small-claims hearings, only if you attend.
What you tell us is not protected by legal professional privilege. We never hold your money. We work on matters in England and Wales only. We do not guarantee any outcome.