British drivers caught speeding by speed cameras in the European Union will no longer face an automatic fine when they get home, now that the UK is no longer a member state.
Since 2015, and the introduction of the Cross Border Enforcement Directive, a driver from one member state caught speeding in another would routinely receive a fine notice from the authorities at home as governments exchanged information.
However since 31 December and the final exit of the UK from the EU, that will no longer apply to British drivers. At the same time, the opposite also applies: EU drivers in the UK will not be fined if caught speeding by camera.
In both cases, drivers can still be fined if caught in the act by police, who will now demand an on-the-spot payment.
At present, with travel restrictions in force across the continent, the effect of the end of the directive will not be felt to the fullest. In normal times, the authorities in France, a favourite destination for British drivers, about half a million drivers every year incur a speeding fine on French roads. And most of those fines are only paid after the driver returns home.
According to an estimate by the motoring website Caradisiac, the loss to the French coffers could be as much as €60 million.
Since the end of the arrangement affects both sides, the search is now on for a replacement, whether on a bilateral basis, or between the UK and the EU as a whole, similar to the arrangement the operates between the EU and Switzerland. Either way, the search for a solution is likely to take some time.
Alan Hope
The Brussels Times
