Driver found guilty of driving without due care and attention thanks to Operation Snap video submission

A driver has been found guilty of driving without due care and attention after footage which captured her near-miss with a cyclist was submitted to Northamptonshire Police’s Operation Snap.

Lucy World, 32, of Far End in Northampton, was recorded on a mobile phone fixed to the bicycle’s handlebars driving without due care and attention as she drove past the cyclist on January 7 last year.

Shortly before 8.50am, the cyclist entered the roundabout junction from Wooldale Road in Northampton, and as he rode towards Landimore Road, a black Ford Fiesta cut across him as he went to exit the junction with Newport Pagnell Road.

World appeared to cut across the front of the cyclist, almost colliding with him, however despite causing him to swerve and brake, he fortunately wasn’t injured. World drove off without acknowledging the incident.

The footage was uploaded to the Force’s Operation Snap online portal and when reviewed by police officers, the video proved beyond doubt that World had shown no consideration for the other road user.

World was issued with a fixed penalty notice but opted to plead not guilty. At Northampton Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, December 14, in her absence she was found guilty of one count of driving without due care and attention.

Following the court’s guilty verdict, World was handed five points on her driving licence, fined £440 and order to pay £625 costs and a £44 victim surcharge.

PC Mo Allsopp-Clarke of Northamptonshire Police’s Safer Roads Team said: “The video evidence clearly showed that World had no consideration for the cyclist on that day, who had right of way on the roundabout.

“Her driving fell below the standard of a competent and careful driver, which could have very easily ended in tragic consequences, and I’m pleased the courts have dealt with the driver positively.

“Hopefully this case demonstrates that we take all instances of poor driving very seriously and we will prosecute offenders accordingly, which can only be a good thing to help keep our roads safer.”

People can report driving offences by uploading video evidence via a simple online portal on the Force website and completing a form, which automatically creates a witness statement to provide a full account of the incident.

Reports are then triaged by trained police staff, who check the footage to ensure it falls within the scheme's remit and contains clear views of an offender’s number plates so they can be identified.

If it matches the Operation Snap criteria, police officers in the Safer Roads Team then examine the footage. If a driving offence is identified, legal proceedings will begin where required.

The team only has 14 days to investigate any offences and members of the public are asked to submit their videos as soon after the incident as possible to allow the maximum time for the footage to be reviewed.

Anyone who submits footage via Operation Snap can find out the outcome of their submission by following the link on their confirmation email which will take them to a monthly update.

For more information about Operation Snap or to submit video footage, visit the Northamptonshire Police website at northants.police.uk/OpSnap