A Sheffield-based couple have lost their legal battle against a speeding fine after trying to dispute the camera's accuracy because it was set up on a bend in the road.

Vikki Fielden was backed by her husband Dr Iain Fielden, a physicist at Sheffield Hallam University, in challenging a speeding ticket she was awarded three years ago.

She was snapped travelling at 36mph in a 30mph zone in June 2006 and a High Court judge told her that her case was "doomed to fail".

Ms Fielden had argued that the camera's reading was inaccurate because it was placed on the far side of a road on a corner.

She said the camera's positioning breached guidelines and could give a wrong reading if the car deviated from a straight line.

Last year a judge at Bradford Crown Court rejected their appeal, leaving the couple with a £15,000 legal bill.

Aidan Carr, partner at Rowlands, who specialises in motoring cases, commented: "This case illustrates how important it is to obtain professional, impartial advice about the merits of the case and also the likely costs involved.

It is an important part of a lawyer's task to advise both when there is defence to an allegation and when a case has no merits".