An Ipswich man has been fined £15,000 and hit with 138 points for failing to identify who was driving a car suspected of speeding along the same road on more than 20 occasions.

Marius Balan, of Foundry Lane, had been suspected of exceeding the limit 23 times in 22 weeks along a stretch of the A12 covered by average speed cameras – but failed to provide police with information relating to the driver’s identification.

The 25-year-old was banned from driving for 30 months in his absence at Suffolk Magistrates’ Court on Friday.

Balan had been charged with driving a BMW at speeds of between 79mph and 93mph on the northbound carriageway of the A12 between Stratford St Mary and East Bergholt on four occasions last July, twice in August and six times in September, as well at speeds of between 80mph and 83mph along the opposite carriageway on a total of four occasions in July, August and September.

Seven more recent charges were brought forward to be dealt with by magistrates on the same day, including three last October and four in November.

On each occasion, Balan failed to fulfil a legal obligation on the owner or keeper of a vehicle involved in an alleged offence to give information on the identity of the driver, under section 172 of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

Failure to comply with the requirement can lead to prosecution – resulting in six points and a fine of up to £1,000 for each offence.

Balan was summonsed to court on Friday to face a driving disqualification, due to the ‘totted-up’ points imposed for the volume of accumulated offences.

The court heard he had been disqualified from driving for nine months in the meantime, on December 13, for totting-up more than 12 points for other offences.

Magistrates withdrew the speeding offences and sentenced Balan for the more serious counts of failing to provide information.

They imposed six penalty points and a fine of £660 for each offence.

It meant Balan incurred a total of 138 points and a financial penalty of £15,180, plus £1,955 costs and a £66 statutory court surcharge. He was banned from driving for a total of 30 months for totting up more than 12 points.

Magistrates said Balan was a persistent offender who had failed to respond to letters and attend court.