A significant technical fault with variable speed cameras on some of Britain's busiest roads has led to thousands of motorists being incorrectly fined for speeding over the past four years. National Highways has issued a public apology and confirmed that all wrongly issued penalties will be cancelled and refunded.
Technical Glitch Triggered False Readings
The problem, which began in 2021, was caused by a flaw in the system controlling variable speed cameras. These cameras are designed to enforce changing limits, often used during roadworks or to manage traffic flow. The fault meant that cameras continued to detect speeding after the displayed limit had legally increased on sections of motorway and A-road.
National Highways stated that a software update is believed to be the root cause. The issue resulted in approximately 2,650 incorrect camera activations across the network. However, the agency emphasised that only a "very small number" of these activations actually resulted in a penalty notice being issued to a driver.
Refunds, Points Removal, and Enforcement Pause
Police forces are now tasked with contacting every affected driver. The process will involve reimbursing the fine in full and removing any penalty points that were added to licences as a result of the error. National Highways has stressed that no further fines will be issued from the affected cameras until authorities are completely confident the problem is resolved.
Despite this pause on the faulty cameras, other enforcement methods remain fully active. This includes:
- Mobile speed camera units
- Police patrols
- Average speed check sites
Safety Assurances and System Fix
In its statement, National Highways moved to reassure the public about road safety. The organisation confirmed the fault impacted around 10 per cent of England's motorways and strategic A-roads and insisted that safety was never compromised. The Chief Executive confirmed a technical solution has now been developed to prevent any future incorrect prosecutions.
While the 2,650 incorrect activations represent a serious error, National Highways provided context by noting this figure constitutes less than 0.1 per cent of the six million total activations recorded by the variable speed camera system during the same period.
