Victims' Rights
Advocating for Victims' Rights
RoadPeace fights for recognition, respect, and fair treatment for all road crash victims and their families.
Road crash victims deserve the same rights as other crime victims. We campaign for access to information, quality support services, and fair national standards for victim care. By raising awareness and pressing for reform, RoadPeace ensures that victims’ voices are heard and respected at every stage.
Rights for crash victims
If road crime was treated as a real crime…
… then victims of road traffic crime would be treated as victims of crime. They would have equal rights, including:
- Right to information and support
- Right to be counted and included
- Right to be represented
But the harsh reality is…
- Those injured in crashes receive less information on the investigation and prosecution than those injured in assaults, even with the MoJ’s revised definition of victims of crime
- The MOJ and the Home Office do not include culpable road deaths in their definition of homicide. Those bereaved by law breaking drivers do not receive any support from the MOJ funded Homicide Service
- No statistics are collected on the victims of road traffic crime, including those killed. The government collates data on offenders and offences, but not the victims of road crime
- Crime surveys do not include questions on being a victim of a driving offence
RoadPeace holds that all road crash victims should be treated as victims of crime, until the contrary is proven.
Road crime victims or road crash victims?
This is how other victims of crime are treated. This is also the principle the police adopted with their Road Death Investigation Manual in 2001.
If homicide included culpable road death, then families bereaved by law breaking drivers would qualify for more support. They would be offered a caseworker to help them understand the justice system, as families of murder and manslaughter already are. All bereaved families would also have the right to appeal the charging decision.
Those killed and injured by law breaking drivers would be counted and included in victim of crime surveys and statistics. We would know how many pedestrians had been killed by dangerous drivers, or cyclists injured by drink drivers, or motorcyclists run over by careless drivers.
Victims of road traffic crime would be included in government’s criminal justice strategies and programmes.
But road crime is not treated as crime. Victims of crashes involving criminal convictions do not have the same rights as other victims of crime.
What does RoadPeace want?
An end to the systemic discrimination of road traffic crime victims.
- This would mean victims of road crime would have the same rights to information and support as other victims of crime. They would be counted and included in crime victim statistics, surveys, and strategies.
- Families bereaved by crashes should be offered caseworkers, as families bereaved by homicide are.
- Road crash victims to be treated as victims of crime, until the contrary is proven.
- Support and information should be provided for all crash victims. They may not be victims of crime, but they will all have been dependent on the criminal justice system for information and civil justice. Over £23million is raised from the victim surcharge raised from driving offences (half of all Victim Surcharge revenue) but only a fraction of this is invested in supporting victims of driving offences.
- Victim surcharge should be extended to NDORS, at least with those crashes where someone was injured.
- Information for the bereaved and injured should be improved at both the national and local level. Local guides should be funded by the PCC and developed with police, victims and campaigners working together.
- Crash victims, starting with bereaved families and those seriously injured, should be asked about their level of satisfaction with the police response, as victims of other crime are.
- Best practice FLO standards should be agreed to ensure consistent treatment of bereaved families.
Explore how we are advocating for victims' rights
Improved Investigations
Investigation leads to justice, and a thorough investigation is the cornerstone to justice
Effective Inquests
Effective inquests are the cornerstone of finding the truth behind a collision.
Appropriate Prosecution
The justice system – and society, in general – is reluctant to hold drivers accountable.
Effective Sentencing
Tougher sentences, including long custodial sentences and lifelong bans, would be given to dangerous drivers and serial offenders.
Traffic Law Enforcement
RoadPeace holds that all road crash victims should be treated as victims of crime.
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