What UK Drivers Need to Know
France takes road safety seriously, and its network of speed cameras is extensive. As a UK driver, it’s crucial to understand how these cameras work, what to expect if you speed, and how fines are handled across borders.
How Does It Work?
The automated control system in France captures speeding violations using cameras, identifies the vehicle's owner through its registration, and sends fines directly to their residence.
Types of Speed Cameras in France
1. Fixed Speed Cameras (Radar Fixe)
These cameras monitor speed in high-risk areas to reduce accidents.
Technical Margins:
A 5 km/h margin below 100 km/h or 5% above 100 km/h is applied in favour of the driver.
Example: If you're recorded at 97 km/h, the adjusted speed is 92 km/h.
Signage:
Fixed cameras are often signposted with speed camera warning signs.
Locations:
Accident-prone areas.
Major roads to enforce lower average speeds.
Hard-to-police areas like tunnels or bridges.
HGV Discriminating Cameras (Radar Discriminant)
These cameras distinguish between light and heavy vehicles to enforce specific speed limits for HGVs.
Technical Margins:
Same as fixed cameras (5 km/h or 5%).
Key Locations:
Roads with significant HGV traffic.
Dangerous slopes, tight bends, or urban areas with high risk.
Mobile Speed Cameras (Radar Mobile)
Operated from unmarked police vehicles or roadside setups, these cameras are versatile and can appear anywhere.
Signage:
None. These cameras are designed to be unpredictable.
Key Locations:
Temporary sites like roadworks.
Accident-prone stretches.
Important for UK Drivers:
Mobile cameras are harder to anticipate and often target transient or unprepared drivers unfamiliar with the area.
Average Speed Cameras (Radar Tronçon)
These calculate the average speed of a vehicle over a road section to prevent sudden braking near fixed cameras.
Technical Margins:
Same as fixed cameras (5 km/h or 5%).
Key Locations:
Long motorway stretches.
Dangerous sections like bridges and tunnels.
Tip for UK Drivers:
Maintain consistent speeds over monitored sections to avoid penalties.
Red Light Cameras (Radar Feu Rouge)
These detect vehicles crossing red lights.
How They Work:
First photo: Vehicle crosses the stop line.
Second photo: Vehicle continues past the light.
Key Locations:
Urban crossroads.
Areas near schools, retirement homes, or major intersections.
Good to Know:
If your vehicle crosses the line but stops before entering the intersection, you won’t be fined.
Level Crossing Cameras (Radar Passage à Niveau)
Similar to red-light cameras, these monitor vehicles at railway crossings to prevent dangerous violations.
Signage:
None, as the flashing lights and barriers serve as sufficient warning.
New-Generation Mobile Cameras (Unmarked Radar Cars)
These advanced radar-equipped cars are some of the most discreet speed enforcement tools used on French roads. Operated by private companies or the police, they are designed to detect speeding vehicles without warning drivers in advance. Their unmarked nature makes them particularly effective, and their use is expanding across France.
How They Work
New-generation mobile cameras are installed in unmarked vehicles such as Peugeot 308s, Ford Focuses, or Volkswagen Passats. These cars are equipped with infrared cameras that can detect speeding vehicles on both sides of the road while in motion.
They use an invisible flash, making it nearly impossible for drivers to know if they have been caught. The cameras operate on pre-set routes determined by local prefectures, and drivers of these vehicles cannot deviate from their routes or be incentivized to issue more fines.
Technical Margins
The system allows a margin of 10 km/h for speeds under 100 km/h and 10% for speeds above that. For example, if you are driving at 58 km/h in a 50 km/h zone, the system deducts the 10 km/h margin, resulting in a recorded speed of 48 km/h—below the limit, so no fine is issued. However, if you are traveling at 71 km/h in the same zone, the recorded speed would be 61 km/h, meaning you would be fined.
Fines and Penalties
Fines start at €68, with a deduction of one licence point for being less than 20 km/h over the limit. Serious infractions, such as exceeding the limit by over 50 km/h, can lead to fines up to €1,500, the loss of six licence points, and a driving ban of up to three years.
Expansion in 2025
By the end of 2025, regions such as Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, Occitanie, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur will see an increase in these vehicles, with the number rising to 500-550 from the current 400.
Other regions, including Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Brittany, Normandy, and Nouvelle-Aquitaine, already have widespread use of these cars. Corsica and Île-de-France remain exceptions, with Corsica having no radar cars and Île-de-France relying solely on police-operated vehicles for now.
How to Spot an Unmarked Radar Car
While these vehicles are meant to blend in with normal traffic, observant drivers might notice subtle features such as discreet capture devices on the front grille, a black box on the rear dashboard, or a small square camera mounted on the back windscreen.
However, relying on visual detection is risky, as the cars are specifically designed to remain inconspicuous.
Unmarked radar cars are a significant part of France's road safety strategy, aiming to reduce speeding-related accidents. UK drivers should be particularly cautious, as being caught speeding by these vehicles can result in fines being issued directly to your UK address under EU cross-border enforcement rules.
Speeding fines in France
Pre-Brexit: The French authorities would have sent a fine to your UK address using the EU cross-border enforcement rules.
Post Brexit: The process has changed but you can't just ignore them. The French authorities may still send a fine to your UK address using bilateral agreements established post-Brexit.
Fines and penalties in France fall into four different classes. Fines for speeding are either a 4th or 5th class fine. The fine will be considered 4th class if you are between 20km/h and 50km/h over the set limit, but you will be given a fifth-class ticket if you are exceeding the limit by over 50km/h.
Most driving offences are 4th class penalties.
The speed limits in France are as follows. Young drivers (those who have held their licences for less than two years) must sometimes abide by slightly different limits.