CORNWALL’S booming staycation trade may be fuelling a surge in little-known driving offences, new figures suggest.

Data from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency reveals Cornwall is one of the UK’s top hotspots for SP20 speeding endorsements – penalties issued to drivers of caravans, motorhomes and vehicles towing trailers who exceed lower speed limits.

Between 2022 and 2025, 598 Cornwall drivers were caught under the rule, while neighbouring Devon recorded 806 offences. Together, the two counties account for more than one in five of all SP20 penalties nationwide, this despite making up less than four per cent of England’s population.

The South West as a whole recorded nearly 30 per cent of all cases.

The figures come amid Cornwall’s continued popularity as a holiday destination, with thousands of visitors arriving each year in caravans and hired motorhomes.

Under UK law, these vehicles must stick to reduced speed limits – 50mph on single carriageways and 60mph on dual carriageways – rules many drivers appear unaware of.

Graham Conway, whose firm Select Car Leasing obtained the data, said Cornwall’s roads may be part of the problem.

“Devon and Cornwall have long, open roads where it’s easy to drift above 50mph without thinking,” he said. “A lot of people simply don’t realise that once you hook up a caravan or hire a motorhome, different speed limits apply.”

The number of offences has climbed sharply in recent years, rising from 1,103 nationally in 2022 to 1,999 in 2024, before easing slightly last year, a trend linked to the post-pandemic staycation boom.

The data also challenges stereotypes, showing most offenders are experienced drivers aged 35 to 44, with men accounting for around 95 per cent of cases.

Perhaps most striking is what the DVLA does not know. When asked to break down SP20 offences by vehicle type, it confirmed it simply does not hold that data.