High Court extends street racing injunction banning motor racing, stunts and dangerous driving in Black Country

The High Court has granted an application to extend an interim injunction banning 'street racing', also known as 'car cruising', across four Black Country councils.

The four councils – City of Wolverhampton Council, Dudley Council, Sandwell Council and Walsall Council – initially secured an interim injunction in December 2022 prohibiting people from participating, as a driver, a rider or a passenger, in a gathering of two or more people at which some of those present engage in motor racing, stunts or dangerous or obstructive driving.

Mr Justice Freedman reviewed the interim injunction at the High Court earlier this week (13 February) before permitting the original order to continue.

A further review hearing is scheduled for May to consider whether the interim injunction should remain in force or be amended.

Anyone found to have breached the injunction will be in contempt of court and could be hit with penalties ranging from imprisonment or a fine to an order to have their assets, such as their car, seized.

Under the injunction, stunts like burnouts, doughnuts, drifting and undertaking are explicitly forbidden.

In the run-up to the hearing for extending the interim injunction, a spokesperson for the claimant councils announced that they were planning on arguing for an amendment of the terms to also ban people from either organising or being a spectator at street racing events.

However, the injunction's terms were not extended to include a ban on people from organising or being spectators at street racing events. A spokesperson for Wolverhampton said it still plans to request the change in future hearings.

The City of Wolverhampton Council led the application.

Cllr Jasbir Jaspal, the City of Wolverhampton Council's Cabinet Member for Public Health and Wellbeing, said: "Street racing, also sometimes described as car cruising, is noisy, dangerous and illegal and some events have resulted in serious injuries and even death, as we tragically saw last autumn in Oldbury.

"We are pleased that the High Court has recognised the positive impact that the interim street racing injunction has had since its introduction in December, and has permitted it to remain in force."

Adam Carey