 More than 50,000 drivers have been wrongly flashed by the speed camera in Chideock because the road used to mark out a 30mph zone doesn't exist. Every motorist who has been caught by the camera is now being urged to claim back their fines which may be worth more than three million pounds (and over 150,000 penalty points).
Dorchester Crown Court overturned lorry driver Alan Dawes conviction for doing 41mph in the 30mph zone of the A35 through Chideock where there are no streetlights.
{audio}radio/Dreadzone - Little Britain.mp3{/audio} INSTRUMENT PROBLEM
The problem was with the statutory instrument that is required by law to designate a 30mph zone where there are no streetlights. It measured the eastern end of the village where the zone runs from a Seatown Road' in the centre of the village. It emerged during Mr Dawe's appeal that there was no street of that name.  WATCHING THE WATCHERS
Mr Dawe originally appealed on the grounds that the signs did not comply with regulations, only to discover a totally different flaw in his conviction. He said: "I was just lucky that I had been looking at the traffic sign regulations just a few weeks before. We are in a world where a lot of rules are added and people think we are being watched by big brother, but we have to make sure the authorities are being monitored."
Dorset Safety Camera Partnership spokesman Pat Garrett said they were unable to comment on the significance for other drivers as they were liaising with the Crown Prosecution Service to investigate the possibility of an appeal. Shoot the Gatso...and what about ...An old lady crosses the road...?
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