Speeding fine appeal win - how man saved £900 in court

It has been nine months since David Standingford, 53, of Larkfield Grove, Chepstow, received a notice of intended prosecution after speeding on 30mph road.

“Then, from my perspective, nothing happened,” he said. And then on May 16, he received a single justice procedure notice alleging he “failed to comply” with a fixed penalty offer he never received.

Pleading guilty to the offence, he paid the “full whack” of a £1,095 fine – some £995 higher than the original penalty would have been.

Lawyers advised Mr Standingford he had “little chance” of overturning the "well-known" Royal Mail precedent, so he represented himself.

David Standingford (Image: David Standingford)

Appealing at Newport Crown Court on Friday, November 10, he noted: “The presumption that a letter, once sent via Royal Mail, will reach its destination appears to be implicit in the legal process.

“This may have once been a reasonable assumption, however recent public news articles show that this is not the case.

“If this presumption has not been tested in court before, then it is time to do so.”

The court allowed Mr Standingford’s appeal, reducing his driving licence endorsement from four points to three and rectifying the amount he had to pay to the original £100.

Just three days later, Ofcom closed an investigation into Royal Mail which found they had failed to meet their national performance targets for 2022/23.

“While no one tells you not to appeal, the indications are that you won’t win. If you get caught in this situation and think you can’t, you can,” Mr Standingford said.

He believes “Standingford’s Law” could save thousands of people from being punished with hefty fines for not complying with penalties they never received.

“Hopefully, this will change the process. It’s bonkers they are still sending paper. If they want to save time and costs – and hassle – just do it over email.

“By the time they send you the letter, they have already got your phone number and email address and they are choosing not to use it."

A Royal Mail spokesperson said: “We are committed to improving the quality of our service and ensuring mail is delivered consistently and reliably throughout the United Kingdom.”

The Ministry of Justice were approached for comment.