The Expert will be specific knowledgeable people at the Department of Transport, Arrive Alive Communications, the Road Traffic Management Corporation or others who might have the expertise to answer the question.
1. One of the biggest and regular mistakes that motorists make is to “wait for the summons” and then never take the appropriate action to deal with the incident.
2. Whilst the implications of this practice are not as prejudicial to your case under the stand alone enforcement of the National Road Traffic Act as administered by the Criminal Procedures Act, under the Administrative Adjudication of Road Traffic Offences (AARTO) Act, doing so will have very expensive consequences.
3. Even though the AARTO Act has only been implemented in Tshwane and Johannesburg at this stage, it is due for national rollout next year and everyone should be preparing for the procedures prescribed under this Act now so they do not engage in old habits when it does come into countrywide operation.
4. The AARTO Act provides a number of forms to deal with each infringement should one wish to contest an infringement notice and these must be used in accordance with that act.
5. Elsewhere in the country, one has the option to either use pre-printed forms issued by the various traffic authorities or write a letter to the Chief Traffic Officer or Public Prosecutor – depending on how far down the line the notice is.
6. In your case, it would be best to write to the Chief Traffic Officer in the first instance stating that you were not at the location at the time of the alleged offence and providing proof thereof. This letter should be sent by registered mail or via email (with a read receipt). You should follow this up regularly until such time as you get a response. You could also visit them directly.
a. If the response comes back as “rejected” or if it comes back with a reduction of the fine, you should not let it rest there and should take it to the public prosecutor.
b. If the fine is cancelled, then this would be the correct action.
7. Should the result be as in (a) above, you should repeat your representation to the public prosecutor and if the result is still a reduction or rejection then you should defend this in court.
8. Time, date and place are fundamental to the law and if a clock is out on an SME device, the problem is owned by the traffic authority. Where you were an hour earlier etc. is irrelevant and I would not state this in any representation or argument. The fact is that you can prove that you were not there at the date and time alleged. The notice dies not say “at this time or somewhere around there within a 24 hour period” it quotes an exact time.
9. The amount of the fine is irrelevant, however I will also point out that under the AARTO Act that fine would be approximately R500 as all AARTO fines are generally 2½ times higher than old style fines and carry points on your license with them.
10. We do not offer this advice because we think speeding is right. Quite the opposite – but we also believe that law enforcement must be conducted correctly, fairly and equitably. Our advice to every motorist is to try and stick to a speed of 10km/h under the speed limit to avoid breaking it, but to also remember that there is a lot more to collisions than speed only and to ensure that your driving habits are in line with what is right.
