Half of drivers reported to Lincolnshire Police under new dashcam scheme could be prosecuted

Operation Snap, which has been backed by the Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner, is an online facility enabling motorists to send in dashcam footage of traffic offences that they may have witnessed or been involved in. In turn this serves as a deterrent if careless drivers know they may be on camera.

The scheme, which has been used in other parts of the country, received 11 clips from members of the public, with action being started over five matters in the first six months of operation.

The offences included driving without due care and attention (close pass of a cycle) and contravention of a red traffic light signal.

There were also cases of a vehicle failing to comply with a lane closure road traffic signal, another not heeding a stop sign and a third failing to comply with a solid white line system.

At this stage it is too soon to predict any outcomes in those five matters, but Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership, which is managing the scheme on behalf of Lincolnshire Police, is satisfied with the scheme’s early results.

Senior manager Steve Batchelor: “We are delighted that Operation Snap is up and running in Lincolnshire.

“We are committed to helping reduce death and injury on Lincolnshire’s roads and believe this initiative will help improve road safety by identifying poor driving.

“Where eligible, we will offer drivers the opportunity to attend an educational course as an alternative to prosecution with the aim of improving driving standards.”

Under the scheme, dashcam footage can be submitted online to Lincolnshire Police’s “report a driving offence” page.

The footage is then examined and further action considered.

If there is an offence, a Notice of Intended Prosecution must be sent out within 14 days and then the registered keeper is required to confirm the identity of the driver.

The driver could then complete a National Driver Offender Retraining Scheme course, if eligible, or attend court if summoned.

Mr Batchelor said the early weeks of the initiative had enabled the technology and procedures to prove they were effective.

“Having done that we will now be looking to increase awareness of Operation Snap and increase submissions from concerned members of the public,” he added.

In 2019 there were 535 people killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions. And 52 people lost their lives on the county’s roads in 2020.

Chief Supt Nikki Mayo, of Lincolnshire Police, said at the launch of Operation Snap on February 1: “A system to effectively process evidence of road traffic offences and poor driving will assist greatly in dealing with poor driver behaviour that can and does lead to collisions, serious injury and death on the roads of Lincolnshire.”

Six of the nine clips uploaded to the Operation Snap portal in February were dismissed – four had no offence identified, one was an out of force offence and the other was too old to act upon.