Operation Snap receives hundreds of examples of poor driver behaviour on county’s roads

Northamptonshire Police is encouraging motorists to take extra care when driving on the county’s roads after receiving hundreds of examples of poor driver behaviour captured on dash-cam footage.

Officers from the Safer Roads Team have shared a short compilation of clips of dangerous incidents to raise awareness of the need to drive safely, legally and in accordance with the conditions.

Between November and December last year, the Force received 761 Operation Snap video submissions from 69 individual witnesses, which resulted in 305 Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) letters being sent to registered vehicle owners.

Driving without due care and attention was the most common offence detected with a total of 115 registered owners sent NIP letters as a result of the dash-cam footage submitted.

Other offences caught on camera ranged from driving dangerously and drivers not being in proper control of a vehicle to overtaking a vehicle on approach to a zebra crossing, ignoring traffic lights and failure to comply with traffic signs.

Northamptonshire Police’s Safer Roads Operations Manager, Matthew O’Connell, said: “Working with our partners from the Northamptonshire Safer Roads Alliance, reducing the number of people who are killed or seriously injured on our roads remains a priority.

“It is therefore always disappointing to receive so many examples of poor driver behaviour on our roads, and that some drivers are still willing to not only put their own lives at risk but those of other road users too.

“As a result of Operation Snap, the chances of getting caught for committing traffic offences have increased, which can only be a good thing, and we hope that releasing video clips of poor driver behaviour will encourage everyone to use our roads more safely.”

Thanks to Operation Snap and the continued support from the public, there are now thousands of additional eyes helping to keep the county’s road safer. This has enabled the Force to act against driving offences it otherwise wouldn’t see.

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 offenders' 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, they will then start legal proceedings where required.

The most common reason for a rejected submission is insufficient video evidence to support a prosecution, or video not submitted within 14 days of the offence being committed.

Matt added: “Although this service allows people to share evidence of driving offences with us quickly and easily, it’s important to remember we only have 14 days from when the offence is committed to take appropriate action.

“It's also important to remember we examine footage for evidence of offences by all parties, so please don't break the law in order to report someone else to us, or you could be in trouble as well.”

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