Community Speed Watch

Freedom of Information (FOI) Act request ref: 01/FOI/26/009339/W

Version Date: 26/01/2026

The Road Safety Team has provided the following information:

Please confirm whether your constabulary issues warning letters to vehicle keepers identified by Community Speed Watch operating in your area in the following circumstances:

1. When the vehicle is registered outside your county;

Yes, A check via the Police National Computer (PNC) and/or the newer sytem - Law Enforcement Data Service (LEDS) is carried out and Community Speed Watch letters are sent to the Registered Keeper shown on DVLA records regardless as to which county they are in. If the DVLA holds a valid Registered Keeper record for a vehicle recorded as speeding by a Community Speed Watch team, then a letter is generated by Devon & Cornwall Police and posted out.

2. When the vehicle is leased or registered to a finance company.
   
   Yes, if the vehicle is registered to a finance company (or similar) then the letter is addressed to the business. All Community Speed Watch letters ask that if the Registered Keeper was not the driver at the time of the speeding occasion that the letter is passed to the driver.

If applicable, please also provide any policy or guidance documents relating to the issuing of such warning letters.

Please see relevant section taken from the Community Speed Watch procedure DCP-OPr-026, version 1.6 below.

3.10 Warning letters

3.10.1 Within 15 days of the date of the session, advice letters will be sent by the Police to the registered keepers of monitored vehicles, which request the drivers to comply with the speed limit in the future.

3.10.2 A maximum of three warning letters will be sent to the same registered keeper recorded as speeding in a rolling 12 month period.

3.10.3 The registered keeper of vehicles recorded travelling at excess speed in a 12 month period will be sent a final warning letter.

3.10.4 Police will be tasked to speak to the registered keeper of vehicles that are identified as a risk following CSW activity. Consideration for police tasking and intervention will be typically triggered by vehicles recorded at excess speed by CSW volunteers 3 times in a 12 month period. Other factors will influence police intervention e.g. vehicles travelling at such excess speed that if recorded by police the threshold would direct an immediate summons to court, other traffic offences are witnessed or any other known police data that would indicate a high risk to road safety.