I would like information regarding how many vehicles have been stopped in the last year with defective headlights please.
I have recently read an article regarding operation Glitter in the Cheddar Valley Gazette which details how many cycle riders have been prosecuted for riding with no lights, so please can you tell me the statistics for vehicles.

For your information, Police Forces in the United Kingdom are routinely required to provide statistics to government bodies and the recording criteria is set nationally. However, the systems used for recording these figures are not generic, nor are the procedures used locally in capturing the data. It should be noted that for these reasons the figures given relate to information from the specific recording system of the Avon and Somerset Constabulary and should not be used for comparison purposes with any other response you receive.

Avon and Somerset Constabulary issued 449 fixed penalty notices for vehicle lighting offences between the periods of the 1st October 2007 – 30th September 2008.

In addition to these statistics, a VDR (Vehicle Defect Rectification Scheme) notice can also be issued for this offence. However in order to provide you with how many were issued solely for vehicle lighting offences would require the examination of every notice issued, there were approximately 3000 issued during this time frame. The cost of providing you with the information is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond i.e. the cost of locating and retrieving the information exceeds the “appropriate level” as stated in the Freedom of Information (Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004. It is estimated that it would cost at least £450 to comply with your request.