Drivers are being urged to be aware of the changes as new stricter rules introduced by the Metropolitan Police reducing the tolerance threshold to 10 per cent plus 2mph, from previously set 10 per cent plus 3mph could see thousands more drivers receive legal action for speeding.

The Metropolitan Police had not announced any changes to speed tolerance rules before they came into force.

Driving in the UK has a speed tolerance meaning a driver gets a small amount of leeway for driving over the speed limit before a camera activates and a driver is penalised, the RAC warns.

The Met stated that no matter the threshold, all drivers should stick the speed limits and never exceed them.   The force said: “Posted speed limits are the maximum speed that road users should travel at any time irrespective of the speed threshold that police commence enforcement action.”

A report from This Is Money indicated the new rules could result in more than 347,000 drivers being prosecuted for speeding between January and June this year. This would be a 259 per cent increase compared to the six months before the new rules came into force.

Source RAC