Operation Snap

Operation Snap helps keep roads safe. We use video footage from the public to identify dangerous or illegal driving.

If you record someone breaking a driving law on your dashcam, CCTV or a passenger’s mobile phone, you can send the footage to us. Examples include:

• dangerous driving
• going through a red light
• ignoring road signs
• using a mobile phone while driving
• crossing solid white lines
• using a trailer in lane 3 of a motorway
• parking in the confines of a crossing

Only send footage you capture while going about your normal day. Do not go out looking for offences. If we believe you have done this, we will not process your report.

If your footage shows you committing an offence, we may also take action against you.

Specially-trained police staff review every submission. In some cases this includes a police prosecutor. They check whether a prosecution is in the public interest and whether there is enough evidence for a realistic chance of conviction.

If we find an offence, we may send the driver an educational letter about their driving or issue a conditional offer for:

• a driver improvement course (if eligible)
• a fixed penalty
• or to attend court

­Operation Snap cannot deal with:

• Vehicles that are uninsured or without a valid MOT. Report these to North Yorkshire Police online or by calling 101.
• Vehicles that are untaxed. Report these to the DVLA.
• Parking offences (unless there is an obstruction). Report these to the City of York Council or North Yorkshire Council.
• Complaints about a taxi or private hire vehicle. Report these to the City of York Council or North Yorkshire Council.
• Lighting offences, such as misuse of fog lights.

Criteria for reporting an incident

Your report must meet all these requirements:

• You must send your report within 10 days of the alleged offence. We can only serve a legal notice to the vehicle keeper within 14 days.
• Your footage must show the full incident. Ideally include 2 minutes before and 2 minutes after or the whole recording if shorter. The total length must be under 10 minutes.
• Use original, unedited footage. Do not alter the video in any way.
• Do not report collisions through Operation Snap. Call 101 within 24 hours instead.

Information you need to provide

You must include:

• date and time of the incident
• location (nearest city, town or village)
• vehicle registration (must be clear in the footage)
• make and colour of the vehicle
• the footage of the offence
• details of what happened and how you were involved

Your submission

You must upload a statement with your footage and be willing to attend court. Your statement must explain what happened and how it affected you. The footage may support this, for example if you had to brake or swerve, or if a cyclist had to wobble or avoid a hazard.

Your statement must be accurate. If your footage shows the wrong date or time, you must explain this and state the correct details. If you include incorrect vehicle registration details, we will take no action. We cannot correct errors because of the number of submissions we receive.

For mobile phone offences, your footage must clearly show that the driver is holding and using a phone.

Submit each incident separately. Do not combine more than one vehicle or offence in your report. We may close your report with no further action if you do. If you have already reported the incident to North Yorkshire Police in another way, do not submit it again unless told to do so.

You may give your email address to receive an update. We will tell you if the result was positive or negative. Positive outcomes can include an educational letter, training course, penalty points, fines or court action. We cannot give detailed updates for each type of prosecution. We will only give feedback for negative outcomes.

We make objective decisions based on the law. Once a decision is made, we cannot review it due to legal time limits. Sending the same incident again will not lead to a review unless you provide new evidence. We cannot discuss ‘no further action’ decisions beyond the feedback we send you.

The information and footage you send may be used in legal proceedings. Do not post your footage anywhere else before or during police or court action. This is Crown Prosecution Service advice and could cause a case to be dropped if not followed. We also may not be able to take further action if the footage is already public. Posting footage can also reveal personal information. When we use footage, we remove personal data.

We may sometimes use your footage for road safety campaigns. We will always keep your identity anonymous.

Submitting your footage confirms that you have read and understood these criteria.