In the past few years, the number of road users with cameras have increased dramatically.

Whether that’s dash cameras in cars, or helmet cameras on bikes, many people now have cameras to protect themselves if incidents occur.

Hampshire Constabulary are taking advantage of these extra eyes on the road by launching their Hants SNAP scheme, where anyone with footage of a potentially dangerous incident can submit it to the police.

While prosecutions from this footage have been possible before, as in an incident of road rage with presenter Jeremy Vine, this new scheme aims to streamline the process.

The scheme has been trialled since August last year with a focus on incidents that put pedestrians and cyclists at risk. Under the trial scheme, 261 incidents were reported, with further action taken in 29% (76) cases, of which five entailed a full criminal investigation.

This has now been opened up to all road users, and road offences, with the exception of collisions and some other offences which should be reported by calling 101, or online.

To be considered by police, the footage must:

  • Be reported within seven days
  • Not be edited
  • Not have been deleted from your device
  • Not be shared on social media
  • Show between one to two minutes either side of the incident

Users must also answer some questions, and provide a witness statement, before the footage is sent to decision makers who will assess whether a prosecution is proportionate, and if the footage contains enough evidence.

Hampshire Constabulary’s Summary Justice Unit manager, Conor Curtis, said: “Those who drive carelessly or dangerously on our roads will have action taken against them.

“We have already dealt with a range of offences, including driving without due care and attention, failing to comply with a red light and driving on a hard shoulder.

“As we increase the scope of the initiative, we continue to see examples of these incidents.

“In the majority of cases where we do take action, the person submitting the footage won’t need to do anything further, and wouldn’t be contacted by us again. We will only get in touch with people if a case is prosecuted at court, which is a small percentage.

“Hants SNAP enables us to protect all road users that need our help and to save lives.”

Footage can be submitted by going to the SNAP site or on the Hampshire Constabulary website.