The use of such procedures provide a cost effective method of dealing with offences, as in the majority of cases no court file has to be prepared. There are clear benefits therefore for the police, the courts and the recipient.
Central Ticket Office (CTO)
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL 01962 814800.
The CTO had been in existence since 1970 and has always been located in Winchester - in the High Street, City Road, and Andover Road prior to Police Headquarters (PHQ).
The office deals with about 40,000 traffic offences each year by way of Endorsable and Non-Endorsable notices. Endorsable notices are £60 and three points and Non-Endorsable notices are £30. Recipients that do not pay the penalty or elect a court hearing have a fine registered at £90 and £45 respectively.
Officers dedicated to ANPR operations can issue fixed penalty offences for No Insurance (£200 and six points), MOT (£60) or Vehicle Excise License (£60).
The CTO can issue Conditional Fixed Penalty Notices for the above offences when detected following the issue of a Production Form (HORT1) by an ANPR officer.
Since February 2004, the CTO has administered the Penalty Notices for Disorder (PND) initiative which provides officers with a quick and effective way of dealing with anti-social behaviour. These notices are currently at £80 and £50 and in 2005 3,427 of the £80 Notices were issued, 61 per cent being paid, 35 per cent Fine Registration (£120), and only 2.3 per cent resulting in a court file. Many of these offences are recordable and count towards “Offenders brought to Justice“.
The Home Office have proposals to add offences to the list for PND disposal and to lower the minimum age of the recipient, which at present is 16.
Safety Camera Unit (SCU)
The SCU started in about 1992 with an officer dedicated to dealing with the offences detected by a Red Light Camera in Southampton.
In 1998 the officer was transferred to PHQ to collocate with the CTO where he was given administrative support. Mobile speed cameras were then introduced in the late nineties, and on April 1 2002, the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Safety Camera Partnership was formed.
The SCU deal with the offences detected by cameras throughout Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and in the operational year to March 2005 66,953 Conditional Offer Fixed Penalty Notices were issued with 52,128 being paid.
The SCU has six staff dedicated to dealing with offenders who are travelling too fast for a Conditional Offer, and for failing to identify the driver at the time of the offence (Section 172).
The SCU has an Intelligence Officer and a constable (from the Roads Policing Unit) who identify and investigate crimes and criminality such as Perverting the Course of Justice.
Most importantly a significant reduction in casualties has been achieved in the operational year, 60% in death or seriously injured and 44 per cent in personal injury collisions.
The Safety Camera Partnership which comprises the police, the Highways Authority, the courts, and the CPS has a dedicated project team co-located with the SCU.
