Richard Hammond convicted of speeding as Top Gear star slapped with fine after Porsche and Bentley violations
Richard Hammond, the 56-year-old television presenter best known for fronting Top Gear alongside Jeremy Clarkson and James May, has been convicted of exceeding the speed limit on two separate occasions within a 20-day period last December.
Mr Hammond was behind the wheel of a Porsche during the first offence on December 2 and was driving a Bentley when caught again on December 22, both times on roads in Herefordshire.
West Mercia Police pursued two prosecutions against the broadcaster, presenting speed camera evidence to support the charges.
His legal representatives entered guilty pleas on his behalf at Telford Magistrates’ Court on July 22.
Richard Hammond was convicted of two speeding offences
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GETTYMagistrate Ann Minton imposed fines totalling £999, along with £240 in costs and £532 in victim surcharges, bringing the overall bill to £1,771.
Mr Hammond also received seven penalty points on his licence.
According to court documents, the first incident occurred shortly before 1pm on December 2, when an officer operating a handheld speed camera recorded Mr Hammond’s Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo travelling at 68mph through a 50mph zone on the A40 at Pencraig.
Three weeks later, at approximately 11:45am on December 22, his Bentley Continental GT was detected doing 82mph in a 70mph limit on the A50 at Rudhall Overbridge, also in Herefordshire.
Richard Hammond pleaded guilty to the offences
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AMAZON PRIMECourt papers additionally noted that Mr Hammond had faced a separate driving allegation in August of the previous year.
The case was dealt with through the Single Justice Procedure, a streamlined process enabling magistrates to handle minor criminal matters in private, with Mr Hammond one of 39 motorists convicted during that session.
Tracking down the presenter proved a challenge for officers, who spent weeks dispatching correspondence to Mr Hammond’s multimillion-pound property portfolio.
Speeding notices were initially posted to a Grade II* listed castle in Herefordshire that he had purchased in 2012, as well as a farm estate valued at around £1 million near Hereford.
Richard Hammond, Jeremy Clarkson and James May worked together for more than two decades | GETTYBoth sets of letters came back marked “addressee gone away.”
Police ultimately located him at a £2 million property near Abergavenny in Wales, where records showed more than 30 vehicles were registered to the address.
Mr Hammond was also charged with two counts of failing to respond to the police correspondence and neglecting to confirm his identity as the driver.
However, his solicitor contested those allegations in a letter to the court: “He replied identifying himself as the driver. He sent the reply by First Class post. He posted the reply himself.”
Richard Hammond
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PA
West Mercia Police chose to drop those additional charges following the solicitor’s intervention.
Mr Hammond is no stranger to high-speed incidents. He came perilously close to death in 2006 after crashing a jet-powered car at 320mph during a Top Gear filming session.
Seven years later, both he and Mr Clarkson were handed three-month driving bans in France after being caught speeding while shooting an episode of the programme.
The trio presented Top Gear together from 2002 until 2015, before moving to Amazon Prime to create The Grand Tour.
Mr Hammond was convicted alongside 38 other defendants dealt with by magistrate Ms Minton during the July 22 sitting.
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