PUTTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT

This article describes the Vehicle Ownership Scheme (VOS), which helps to identify and locate drivers of unregistered vehicles. In August 1995, this initiative was pioneered by police in the county of Lincolnshire, England, which has an unusually high incident of traffic-related problems. This police force's adoption of VOS has provided a basis for success in focusing on what is often a root cause of criminal and traffic law breaking, and its officers are hoping that the scheme will be adopted as good practice throughout the UK. VOS uses the legitimate policing principle of stopping and checking vehicles on public roads. When a vehicle is stopped, the driver is asked whether the vehicle is properly registered. An opportunity to avoid prosecution is offered if the driver notifies changes to the Driver Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) within 14 days. If the offender does not comply, the original VOS ticket forms the basis of a prosecution file. It has been found that the typical errant motorist complies quickly and easily, thus preventing the need for any further action. Many of those who fail or refuse to comply are people already known to the police through their law-breaking activities. The scheme has already handled almost 1000 offenders, and brought several criminal and traffic intelligence successes.