Exclusive – 884 drivers have offences cancelled after speed cameras found to be out of alignment

More than 800 drivers alleged to have been speeding on the A338 spur road in Bournemouth have had their offences cancelled after the cameras were found to have been moved out of alignment.

Dorset Police say the dealignment of the average speed cameras on the southbound stretch between the Blackwater junction and the Cooper Dean roundabout potentially breached the cameras’ approval parameters as approved by the Home Office.

It says that in an effort to be “fair and transparent” 884 offences detected on the specific cameras in the time period Tuesday 7 November to Saturday 16 December 2023 have been cancelled. The drivers concerned have been contacted.

The minimum speeding fine is currently £100 while the cost of a driver awareness course is £120 with the dealignment of the cameras, due to vandalism, losing at least £88,400 in revenue if all the drivers had been prosecuted.

The full statement to Bournemouth One from Dorset Police reads:

“Dorset Police has the duty to ensure that we do not proceed to prosecute traffic offences unless we are content that the evidence is robust.

“It has been detected that during the period of Tuesday 7 November to Saturday 16 December 2023, the average speed cameras on the southbound stretch of the A338 between Blackwater junction and the Cooper Dean roundabout were moved out of alignment. This would potentially breach the cameras’ approval parameters as authorised by the Home Office. We believe the dealignment of the cameras, meaning that the area of the road captured by the cameras’ image moved slightly, was due to vandalism.

“This is not to say that the reported drivers were not identified correctly or that offences were not committed during that period. However, in an effort to be fair and transparent, it was decided to cancel 884 offences detected on those specific cameras for that specific period. There will be no cancellation of any southbound offences outside the stated period as checks showed that the alignment was within approved parameters and evidence was deemed robust. The northbound cameras were unaffected. The 884 drivers concerned have already been contacted and any further query they may have can be submitted to cto@dorset.pnn.police.uk.

“All safety cameras are approved for their type of use, undergo periodic inspections and are checked when they are moved or calibrated. The process of dealing with speed camera offences includes an individual verification of each offence and individual cases will only move to prosecution if the evidence is robust.

“Our plea to motorists is to obey speed limits as speeding is one of the main causes of collisions, which often have devastating consequences. If speed limits are adhered to, the need of enforcement activities will be reduced.”