Excessive Speeding in the ACT

The ACT does not have a specific offence of excessive speeding or extreme speeding. Rather, speeding offences incur harsher penalties the faster the vehicle was traveling. These penalties include fines, demerit points and period of licence disqualification. Dangerous driving and reckless driving are also offences that are contained in the ACT Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act 1999, which sometimes involve speeding. This page outlines the laws around excessive speeding in the ACT.

Speeding by more than 45km/h

A person who exceeds the speed limit by more than 45 km/h will have six demerit points recorded, as well as receiving a fine and possible period of licence disqualification.

Speeding by 15km – 30km/h

A person who exceeds the speed limit by more than 15km/h and less than 30 km/h will have four demerit points recorded, as well as receiving a fine and a possible period of licence disqualification.

Speeding by up to 15km/h

A person who exceeds the speed limit by up to 15 km/h in the ACT will have three demerit points recorded and will also receive a fine and possible period of licence disqualification.

Penalties for speeding in the ACT

Under Regulation 20 of the Road Transport (Road Rules) Regulations 2017, a person may be fined up to 20 penalty units – for exceeding the speed limit. 

Licence disqualifications for excessive speeding

When a person has their licence disqualified for a period in the ACT, they must not drive until the disqualification period has ended. If a person is caught driving whilst their licence is disqualified, they will be charged with an offence for which they may receive a term of imprisonment.

Fighting a speeding infringement 

If a person receives a traffic infringement in the ACT, they may lodge a notice disputing liability within 28 days. The matter will then be referred to the ACT Magistrates Court, where they can plead guilty or not guilty.

A person may be found not guilty of speeding in the ACT if:

• It cannot be proved that the vehicle was travelling at the alleged speed;
• It cannot be proved that they were the driver of the vehicle;
• The person has a legal defence – for example, they committed the offence under duress or in response to an emergency situation. 

The defence of duress

A person is not guilty of an offence if they carried out the act making up the offence under duress. A person acts under duress if they do something only out of fear that another person will carry out a serious threat if they do not comply with their demands.

The defence of emergency

A person is not guilty of an offence if they carried out the act because of a sudden and extraordinary emergency. This defence will succeed if the accused person reacted to the emergency situation in a way that an ordinary person with ordinary self-control would have reacted in the same situation. The accused’s behaviour is to be assessed based on how the emergency appeared at the time of the alleged offence and not with the benefit of hindsight. 

If you require legal advice or representation in any legal matter, please contact Armstrong Legal.