What is a Notice of Intended Prosecution? Guide and Info
Have you received a speeding ticket? If so, you may have many questions. Understanding what a Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) is and how to manage it is important.
This article will help you learn:
- What a Notice of Intended Prosecution is and why the police might give you one.
- How to appeal against a speeding fine and possibly beat it.
- The time limit for the police to issue a notice.
- What happens if you get a NIP after 14 days.
- Where to find more help if you need it.
Getting a speeding ticket can be worrying — you may be scared about the legal and money problems it might bring. You are not alone. Every month, over 32,000 people visit this site for guidance on tickets and fines.
We understand how you feel, and we are ready to help you. So, take a moment, breathe, and let’s learn how to manage your NIP.
Do You Have to Pay?
In some circumstances, you might have a legitimate reason not to pay your fine.
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What should you do when you get a NIP for speeding?
When you get a NIP for a speeding offence, you have two choices which I’ve detailed here:
- First, you could plead guilty to the offence and pay up
- Second, you could plead not guilty in which case, the case goes to court!
Pleading not guilty could end up costing you more because court fees and a higher fine could be levied against you.
Is it worth having a barrister or solicitor represent you?
You may want to hire a solicitor or barrister if the offence means you could lose your driving licence. However, the cost may be prohibitive and there’s no guarantee you’d win the case even with legal representation.
In short, you could still end up with a disqualification, penalty points and a fine!
What happens when you ignore a Notice of Intended Prosecution?
Things get very messy and expensive when you ignore a Notice of Intended Prosecution. You have a legal obligation to respond to a NIP which is to respond to a section 172 request.
You could face prosecution if you don’t.
The request is for information about a driver’s details!
Can you reject a Notice of Intended Prosecution?
You can only reject a Notice of Intended Prosecution by filling out the section 172 request. After that, you can ask for a court hearing to dispute the NIP, say for example for a speeding fine.
Only a court can rule whether a NIP is valid!
I’ve listed some useful links here:
| Notice of Intended Prosecution | https://www.gov.uk/speeding-penalties |
| Notice of Intended Prosecution (Scotland) | https://www.askthe.scottish.police.uk/faq/?id=b6c1ac71-6a7f-ec11-8d21-6045bd0e67bf |
How long do the police have to issue a notice?
The police must serve the registered keeper with a Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) within 14 days of the alleged offence. However, the police have 6 months from the date of the offence to issue a Fixed Penalty Notice to the registered keeper.
Successful Appeal Case Study
Situation
| Initial Fine | £100 |
| Additional Fees | £171 |
| Total Fine | £271 |
The Appeal Process
Scott used JustAnswer, online legal service to enhance his appeal. The trial of this cost him just £5.
| Total Fine | £271 |
| Cost of legal advice | £5 |
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What happens when you get a NIP after 14 days?
UK law stipulates that a Notice of Intended Prosecution must be served within 14 days of an alleged traffic offence. So, when you get a NIP after 14 days, you can’t be prosecuted by the police.
However, there are exceptions where the police could still prosecute you even if the NIP arrives through your post box after 14 days!
An example is shown below:
Source; https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5286475/notice-of-intention-to-prosecute
So, if you were in a hire car when the violation occurred, the police met their legal obligation to serve the NIP within the deadline. The hiring company must let the authorities know who was driving at the time.
In short, even when you get the NIP after 14 days, you could still face prosecution.
What’s the deadline for responding to a NIP?
You have 28 days to respond to a NIP. However, if you weren’t the driver, you must tell the police who was. It’s a legal obligation to provide the authorities with the driver’s details.
If you don’t tell the police who was driving, or you don’t provide all the information required, you could be prosecuted.
Moreover, you could get 6 points on your driving licence and be fined £1,000!
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Do the police give drivers verbal NIPs?
Yes. You could get a verbal NIP from the police when they catch you committing a traffic violation. When this happens, you don’t get sent a Notice of Intended Prosecution through the post!
Why? Because the police already served you with a verbal NIP at the time of the offence!
You could receive a Fixed Penalty Notice together with a fine when the police choose to serve you with a Single Justice Procedure Notice.
What happens when you’re not the driver who committed an offence?
You have a legal obligation to tell the police who was driving when a traffic offence occurred. It would be an expensive mistake not to.
The police must be notified that you were not driving and told who was within 28 days of receiving a NIP. You could be prosecuted if you fail to meet the deadline and don’t provide the information to the police.
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