Avon and Somerset ranks 'highest' for bad drivers as thousands of road users send police footage
Road users sent in almost 20,000 reports of careless and dangerous driving under a nationwide police campaign - in just the past three years alone. Avon and Somerset Police collects reports under Operation SNAP, a streamlined process designed to allow members of the public to submit photos and videos.
Accident Claims Advice obtained information from 29 police forces that are taking part in the scheme. Between them, 187,813 cases were logged between the start of 2021 and April 2024. The increase in reports - 42,065 in 2021/22, 61,670 in 2022/23 and 78,868 in 2023/24 - highlights the public’s increasing interest in helping the police catch dangerous drivers in the act.
Adding the 51,678 reports received by Sussex Police under Operation Crackdown, their own scheme adjacent to SNAP, more than 200,000 cases were confirmed as being sent in by the public at an annual average of more than 66,000.
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The top 10 places where the most SNAP reports were made:
The 19,949 reports received by Avon and Somerset Police between April 2021 and April 2024 are made up of:
4,607 submitted in 2021/22
6,844 submitted in 2022/23
8,498 - the highest of any force in any of the past three years - submitted in 2023/24
What Avon and Somerset Police say:
A statement from Avon and Somerset Police reads:
"Avon and Somerset Police is committed to improving road safety and has received nearly 20,000 public submissions in the past three years under Operation SNAP, which is a testament to the vigilance of local road users. These submissions play a vital role in helping us to address dangerous and careless driving behaviours, including failure to wear a seatbelt, and driver distraction (e.g. mobile phone use.)
"We actively encourage members of the public to submit Journeycam footage to help us target dangerous drivers and promote safer roads across the region. The evidence provided has a real impact on reducing road risks and holding offenders accountable.
"In 2023, Avon and Somerset Police attended and investigated 54 fatal road traffic collisions, resulting in the tragic loss of 63 lives. The majority of these can be attributed to one or more of the Fatal Five: drink and drug driving, excess speed, use of a mobile phone at the wheel, failure to wear a seatbelt, and careless driving. Road users who commit one of the Fatal Five offences are significantly more likely to be involved in a fatal collision than those who do not.
"Through education and enforcement, we are working to raise awareness of the Fatal Five and encourage behaviour change in a bid to prevent serious injury and fatal collisions on our roads."