Television presenter Richard Hammond has been convicted and fined for two separate speeding offenses in Herefordshire. The incidents occurred on December 2 and December 22, with police initially sending speeding tickets to a castle Hammond purchased in 2012 and a farm estate near Hereford. Both mailings were returned marked as undeliverable.
Authorities eventually located Hammond at his home near Abergavenny, Wales, where more than 30 vehicles were registered. He was prosecuted for the speeding offenses after initially failing to identify himself as the driver. In a letter to the court, read by his solicitor, Hammond stated he had replied by First Class post and posted the reply himself. The police ultimately withdrew additional charges related to failing to identify the driver.
Documents from the case also indicate that Hammond was accused of another driving offense in August of the previous year. He was previously banned from driving for three months in France in 2013 after being caught speeding with Jeremy Clarkson and James May while filming for the BBC's Top Gear program. Hammond hosted Top Gear with Clarkson and May from 2002 to 2015.