Penalty point `lottery` revealed
Being prosecuted for a motoring offence can be a "postcode lottery", according to new figures.
There is a "massive gulf" between the toughest police forces and those with a more "softly, softly" approach, the statistics from Auto Express magazine showed.
As many as 16% of owners of cars in Northamptonshire got penalty points on their licences in 2007, yet only 2% did so in Durham.
In Scotland the figures, which related to 2008/09, showed that as many as 21% of cars in Dumfries and Galloway got penalty points, while in Strathclyde the figure was only 8%.
The highest proportion of motorists caught speeding in England in 2007 was in Cumbria - 12%.
The highest number of red-light jumpers was in Nottinghamshire - at more than 50%. The worst offenders for driving without insurance were in Hertfordshire.
Topping the mobile phone offenders' list for England and Wales was Merseyside, followed by South Yorkshire.
Auto Express news and features editor Julie Sinclair said: "Our investigation reveals the shocking truth behind the police penalty points system in the UK, that it's a postcode lottery. The extent to which your driving licence is at risk simply depends on where you live."
An AA spokesman said: "The figures clearly demonstrate that police strategies vary enormously.
"It is unfair that what you're doing in one place might not get you a penalty, whereas it might in another. But it's never been consistent. It does mean drivers are a bit cynical about what goes on, because it clearly is a lottery."