NIP Not Received Within 14 Days

What does the law say?

Section 1(1) of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 states that a person shall not be convicted of certain offences — including speeding — unless they were warned at the time of the offence, or a notice of intended prosecution was served on them or the registered keeper within 14 days. This requirement exists to ensure drivers are made aware of alleged offences promptly, while evidence and recollection are still fresh.

How is the 14 days calculated?

The 14-day period runs from the date of the alleged offence, not from the date the police processed the camera evidence. Day one is the day after the offence. The NIP must be served — meaning received by or sent by first class post to — the registered keeper by the end of day 14. If your NIP envelope has a postmark dated day 15 or later, or you can show it arrived after the 14-day window, you have a defence.

What counts as proof?

The strongest evidence is the Royal Mail postmark on the envelope showing the date it was posted. Keep the envelope. If the postmark shows posting on day 15 or later, the NIP was served late. Even without the envelope, if the date printed on the NIP itself is more than 14 days after the offence, the timing issue is clear on the face of the document.

What about the s.172 notice?

The section 172 notice — requiring you to identify the driver — typically arrives with the NIP. Even if the NIP is late and the speeding prosecution cannot proceed, you should still respond to the s.172 notice. Failure to respond to a s.172 notice is a separate offence carrying 6 penalty points and a fine of up to £1,000.

Can the police argue postal delays?

Courts have held that if the prosecution can prove the NIP was posted by first class mail within the 14-day period, there is a presumption of service under s.7 of the Interpretation Act 1978. This means if they posted it on day 12 but you received it on day 16, the prosecution may argue it was validly served. The key evidence is the date of posting, not receipt. This is why keeping the envelope matters.

What if the vehicle was sold or the address changed?

If the DVLA records showed an old address at the time the NIP was sent, the police may have posted it to the wrong address. This does not automatically invalidate the NIP if it was posted within 14 days, but it may support a defence that you did not receive it and could not have complied with the s.172 requirement.

Next steps if your NIP was late

• Keep the NIP and envelope as evidence.
• Note the date of the alleged offence and the date you received the NIP.
• Respond to the s.172 notice within 28 days.
• Write a formal letter raising the late NIP defence citing s.1 RTOA 1988.
• Request that prosecution be discontinued on this ground.