Speeding British drivers to evade fines in Europe after Brexit

Many British motorists caught speeding in Europe will evade fines because information sharing agreements have ceased post-Brexit.

The EU's Cross-Border Enforcement Directive no longer applies, French officials have said, so British-registered vehicles will no longer be sent fines for offences detected by roadside cameras.

Similarly, motorists with vehicles registered in the EU caught speeding in Britain will not be sent fines.

More than 444,000 British motorists were fined for offences detected by cameras in France last year, more than Belgians with 295,899, Spaniards with 262,012 and the Germans on 249,291.

It will cost the French £60 million a year when traffic from British motorists returns to pre-Covid levels. Penalties in France range from £61 to £3,360. These can be levied up to a year after the offence.

However, British motorists can still be punished if stopped by the police.

They will be told to pay on-the-spot fines and if found to have been travelling at 50km/h or more above the speed limit they can also have their vehicle seized.

The EU directive dates back to 2015 but France and Britain only began sharing information about speeding offences caught on camera last year.

The UK had initially resisted joining the scheme, believing the cost of setting up and managing the system would be higher than the income from foreign drivers committing offences in the UK.