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Search forGloucestershire motorists named and shamed
Thursday, July 24, 2008, 15:06
A total of 32 incidents of bad driving in the county have been posted on the controversial website www.betterdrivingplease.com, which asks people to log on and report incidents of allegedly bad motoring – including the number plate of the vehicle involved.
Founder of the website, Andrew McGavin, from Moreton-in-Marsh, said: “I was at a community event where everyone agreed that something had to be done about speeding and dangerous driving, so I built the website.
“It is unacceptable that the police don't keep records of near misses and problem drivers. Cameras are not enough to stop bad driving.
“On top of that, people are also getting away with false number plates which are ridiculous.”
Although Mr McGavin says that in the year that the website has been running there has been no cause for concern, people reporting others online should be cautious as they may be risking a costly court case.
Cathryn Smith, a defamation specialist at law firm Foot Anstey, said there was a risk that drivers identified on the website could have a claim for defamation.
If, for example, a person who drives for a living was identified as being on the site via their number plate and their boss subsequently sacked them, the driver may have a claim.
“The first person in the frame is the poster because they are the person putting the defamatory material out there,” said Cathryn.
“The person running the website may also be in the frame if they do not remove the post as soon as a complaint about the post is brought to their attention.”
However, it is not a straightforward matter, she added.
Either potential defendant might be able to successfully defend a claim if they can prove the alleged offence took place.
She added that questions would be raised about how widely the defamatory comments were published and whether there was a public interest in allowing court time to be used if the publication was very limited or had very limited impact.
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