© Flickr/Ludovic
The roar of engines, the scrolling of landscapes, and suddenly… a blinding flash.The fear of speeding grips every driver at the sight of a speed camera, and you may have already experienced it. However,French motorists benefit from a certain flexibility thanks to the margins of error applied by the road authorities on the different types of radars. These tolerances are a compensation for technical imperfections of the measuring devices.
At what maximum speed to drive ?
The margins of error are always in the driver's favor and vary according to the type of radar and the speed recorded. For fixed radars, omnipresent on our roads, the margin is set at 5 km/h for speeds not exceeding 100 km/h. Beyond that, it increases to 5% of the measured speed. In concrete terms, on a road limited to 90 km/h, a driver flashed at 96 km/h will see his speed reduced to 91 km/h on the report.
The margin for fixed speed cameras
| Max. speed | Margin | Speeding from: |
|---|---|---|
| 80 km/h | 5 km/h | 86 km/h (retained speed: 81 km/h) |
| 90 km/h | 5 km/h | 96 km/h (retained speed: 91 km/h) |
| 110 km/h | 5% | 116 km/h (retained speed: 111 km/h) |
| 130 km/h | 5% | 137 km/h (retained speed: 131 km/h) |
Mobile radars (whether they are embedded in law enforcement vehicles or operated by private service providers) benefit from a more generous margin because they are even less precise. It rises to 10 km/h up to 100 km/h, then to 10% for higher speeds. This difference is explained by the increased complexity of measurements in motion. Thus, on a motorway limited to 130 km/h, a motorist flashed at 144 km/h by a mobile radar will only be stopped at 131 km/h, narrowly escaping a fine.
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These margins are not a coincidence and Road Safety is transparent about the methodology: they are the result of in-depth consideration of the technical limits of the devices and the need for fairness in the application of the law. They allow for possible inaccuracies in radars and vehicle speedometers to be taken into account, thereby avoiding abusive disputes and unjustified sanctions.
The margin for mobile radars
| Max. speed | Margin | Speeding from: |
|---|---|---|
| 80 km/h | 10 km/h | 91 km/h (retained speed: 81 km/h) |
| 90 km/h | 10 km/h | 101 km/h (retained speed: 91 km/h) |
| 110 km/h | 10% | 122 km/h (retained speed: 111 km/h) |
| 130 km/h | 10% | 144 km/h (retained speed: 131 km/h ) |
Be careful, you should not see these margins as an invitation to systematically flirt with the limits: they remain a technical tolerance, not an acquired right. As you probably know, respecting speed limits is the best guarantee of safety on the roads. With the proliferation of speed cameras on French territory, it is better not to play with fire.
For drivers who want to stay within the speed limit and not pay a fine for their driving, these margins offer peace of mind. A slight involuntary overtaking will not automatically result in a fine, but caution is still required. These margins of error for 2025 are a subtle balance between rigor and pragmatism in road safety policy.
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