IAMRoadSmart: Over a third of police use mobile safety camera vans

More than a third of UK police forces used mobile safety camera vans to prosecute over 8,000 drivers for not wearing seatbelts and around 1,000 with a mobile phone in their hand in, according to IAM RoadSmart’s freedom of Information request in 2016. It was submitted to 44 police forces which revealed that 16 of them used pictures from the cameras in their vans to pursue these offences as a matter of routine while a further four did so occasionally.
February 2, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
More than a third of UK police forces used mobile safety camera vans to prosecute over 8,000 drivers for not wearing seatbelts and around 1,000 with a mobile phone in their hand in, according to IAM RoadSmart’s freedom of Information request in 2016. It was submitted to 44 police forces which revealed that 16 of them used pictures from the cameras in their vans to pursue these offences as a matter of routine while a further four did so occasionally.


IAM RoadSmart’s surveys also showed that drivers place enforcing mobile phone laws in second place behind drink and drug driving as a road traffic policing priority with seatbelt use in sixth place.

While some police forces had reservations about using safety cameras or camera vans to record non-speeding offences, IAM Roadsmart highlighted that questio still need to be resolved around Home Office Type and image quality for successful prosecution.

Sarah Sillars, IAM RoadSmart Chief Executive Officer, said: “Drivers should be reassured that the police are using all the tools in their road safety toolkit to address their top worries. For too many drivers it is only the fear of being caught that will stop them putting themselves and others at risk from smartphone distraction. Not wearing a seatbelt also puts an unfair burden on our emergency services who have to deal with the aftermath of such selfish behaviour. If drivers don’t know about this added enforcement technique then its impact will be reduced so the police should have no hesitation in publicising its use.”

“Our research shows that the use of mobile safety camera vans to pursue phone users and seatbelt offenders varies from one force to another. What we need are clear and consistent guidelines on what the cameras are being used for, what training staff are being given and how the images are being used as evidence. The last thing we want to see are resources being wasted or the road safety message being diluted by careless drivers being acquitted”, Sillars added.

Urban Traffic Control

Related Content

  • Communications hold key to expanding ITS wireless network expansion
    December 21, 2017
    Wireless transmission of data and control information is making smarter traffic management easier and cheaper to install. It has long been known that connectivity is the key to improving traffic management and many cost-benefit studies prove that investment in new technology can be justified in terms of reduced congestion, shorter travel times, improved safety and air quality. However, many authorities’ cap-ex budgets only cover urgent matters, not improvements, making it difficult, if not impossible to
    Read More
  • Avoiding a tangle
    September 4, 2018
    The ITS industry will get into a ‘terrific mess’ if it doesn’t sort out the question of interoperability, says Georg Kapsch. He talks to Alan Dron about data, connectivity – and why governments should stay out of technology issues Governments should set a regulatory framework to help shape the direction of road technologies - but then stand aside and allow industry to create the necessary technologies, according to a European pioneer in the field. Georg Kapsch, CEO of Kapsch Group and Kapsch TrafficCom,
    Read More
  • Jenoptik enforces Warwickshire speed
    December 7, 2021
    33,640 people were caught speeding in Warwickshire during 2020
    Read More
  • Uber to implement clean air fee for all London trips
    October 25, 2018
    Uber will introduce a fee of 15p per mile for all trips booked via its app in London to help its drivers purchase an electric vehicle (EV). The surcharge will be introduced in early 2019. Uber says drivers working 40 hours per week for two years could receive around £3,000 of support towards the purchase of an EV. The initiative is part of Uber’s Clean Air Plan in which the company expects to raise more than £200 million in the next few years to support the switch to electric. Uber estimates tha
    Read More

Highlighted Content