Ryan's Law: Widen definition of 'death by dangerous driving'
This petition gathered 167,461 signatures between 2 March 2021 and 2 September 2021, according to the Parliament petitions site. The Government responded on 24 March 2021. MPs debated it in Westminster Hall on 15 November 2021.
The petition
The petition's creator is not named in the Petitions site's published record. Quoted in full from the UK Parliament petitions site.
Ryan's Law: Widen definition of 'death by dangerous driving'
The offence of causing 'death by dangerous driving' should be widened to include: failure to stop, call 999 and render aid on scene until further help arrives.
A hit & run driver left my brother Ryan in the road & he died. Hiding for 36 hours, charged with failure to stop, the driver received a suspended sentence/fine. Failure to stop/careless driving offers lighter custodial sentences & focuses on fines/suspensions. Drivers should STOP, ring 999 & render AID until help arrives. If they do not they should face charges for death by dangerous driving. The Law should require this & aim to reduce the number of hit & runs & roadside deaths. With this definition, a minimum 10 years-max life sentence, citizens would be better protected.
The Government's response
The Government published its response on 24 March 2021; the petitions site lists the Ministry of Justice as responsible. Its summary:
It is unacceptable for drivers to fail to stop and report an incident. However, the offence should not be used to punish an offender for a serious, but unproven, offence.
The response in full:
Ministers are aware of the tragic circumstances surrounding the death of Ryan Saltern and extend their sympathy to family and friends.
Failure to stop and report offences are often referred to as “hit and run”, but this is not an accurate reflection of the offence. The offence is designed to deal with behaviour relating to failing to stop, not as an alternative route to punish an offender for a more serious, but unproven offence.
The vast majority of failure to stop and report offences involve low level traffic incidents, for example where a driver clips the wing mirror of another vehicle in a narrow street.
In a small number of cases, the failure to stop or report may be related to an incident which leads to the death or serious injury of another person. Where there is evidence the driver caused harm, there is a range of offences for which the driver may be charged including causing death or serious injury from dangerous or careless driving. In these cases, the courts will treat the failure to stop as a further aggravating factor in the sentencing decision. Where there is evidence that the driver tried to frustrate justice or avoid detection, they may also be charged with perverting the course of justice, which carries a life sentence as a maximum penalty.
The Government takes this issue seriously. The Department for Transport is looking into the issue of such incidents of failure to stop resulting in death or serious injury, and exploring whether there are further options that can be pursued.
Department for Transport
Where the signatures came from
Signatures came from 650 constituencies on the boundaries used until the 2024 general election. The largest number, 2,012, came from North Cornwall.
166,507 of the signatures were from the UK and 954 from elsewhere, by the location signers gave.
| Constituency | Signatures |
|---|---|
| North Cornwall | 2,012 |
| St Austell and Newquay | 1,609 |
| Truro and Falmouth | 1,348 |
| Hazel Grove | 1,153 |
| Wallasey | 1,082 |
| Leigh | 1,077 |
| Camborne and Redruth | 1,042 |
| Castle Point | 1,007 |
| South East Cornwall | 922 |
| Stretford and Urmston | 913 |
| Region | Signatures |
|---|---|
| South East | 28,093 |
| North West | 25,859 |
| South West | 21,432 |
| East of England | 18,740 |
| West Midlands | 12,265 |
| London | 11,452 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 11,139 |
| Wales | 10,137 |
| East Midlands | 7,592 |
| Scotland | 6,934 |
| North East | 6,247 |
| Northern Ireland | 2,063 |
Debate in Parliament
MPs debated the petition in Westminster Hall on 15 November 2021. Read the debate in Hansard. House of Commons Library debate pack.
Source and receipt
- https://petition.parliament.uk/archived/petitions/575620.jsonUK Parliament Petitions API · read 2026-10-15 · SHA-256
3d1cf448637fb04f… - The petition on petition.parliament.uk
The petition's words are its creator's and the response is the Government's; this site quotes both and gives no view on either. Signature counts can still change while a petition is open. To report an error, send a correction request.