Welsh teen driver’s car insurance was suspended after black box monitor mistakenly read 60mph speed limits as 20mph – following rollout of Mark Drakeford’s road curbs

• READ MORE: Furious drivers say commuting times have doubled in 20mph zone
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A Welsh teenage driver’s car insurance was suspended after a black box monitor mistakenly read 60mph speed limits as 20mph following the rollout of Mark Drakeford’s road curbs. 

Connor Davies of Penrhyncoch, Ceredigion, said the monitor starting wrongly triggering dangerous driving alerts – after Wales switched its default speed limits to 20mph on September 17. 

Sterling Insurance claimed it suspended the 17-year-old’s cover for a four-day period on Friday but has since reinstated his policy – apologising for the ‘technical issue’. 

Connor’s mother Angela was receiving the alerts and told her son to ‘take it down a bit’, the BBC reported, thinking he was speeding too much as a new driver.

Has this happened to YOU? Email [email protected]. 

It comes after people across Wales told of their misery following the country’s new 20mph speed limit – saying they are forced to crawl from A to B. 

Welsh drivers fought back against the new law by painting over road signs stating the 20mph limit. 

Connor Davies, 17, of Wales, had his car insurance suspended after a black box monitor mistakenly read 60mph speed limits as 20mph

Sterling Insurance asked Angela and her son to travel to the places of his alleged speeding infractions and take photos of the road signs next to a digital map on a phone

Sterling Insurance claimed it suspended Connor’s cover for a four-day period on Friday but has since reinstated his policy – apologising for the ‘technical issue’

The clampdown saw Wales become the first country in the UK to reduce speed limits down from 30mph in built-up residential areas with a view to saving lives and cutting costs for the NHS.

Teenage Connor tried to take an alternative route on his drive to work but the ‘unacceptable driving’ alerts continued. 

He said being accused of speeding felt ‘frustrating’ so he took his father to the car to show him that driving at 32mph through a 40mph zone still caused a speeding alert.

Connor’s sister, presenter and campaigner Jess Davies, took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share the problem, writing: ‘My little brother has a black box in his car and his insurance VOIDED his car policy yesterday for continuously speeding.

‘But he had not. Turns out the black box company has BLANKETED 20mph zones across Wales, including roads that are 60mph.’ 

Sterling Insurance asked Angela and her son to travel to the places of his alleged speeding infractions and take photos of the road signs next to a digital map on a phone. 

Sterling Insurance apologised for the error and said in a statement: ‘The national database had changed the speed limit of a number of roads in his local area across the last four days and a technological issue meant it hadn’t been updated on the Fluxscore app when the journey was completed. 

Connor’s sister, presenter Jess Davies, took to X to share the problem with her followers 

Sterling Insurance apologised for the error and said in a statement: ‘The national database had changed the speed limit of a number of roads in his local area’ 

Motorists in Wales started fighting back against the speed restrictions by spraying over road signs in September, when the rules came into force 

Motorists reported feeling scared to drive on roads amid the threat of penalties and widespread confusion about the new rules

READ MORE: Life inside 20mph zone Britain: Furious drivers say commuting times have doubled, cars are driven at 50mph with no one enforcing limit while side-streets are being turned into rat-runs

‘The information has now been updated, the driver’s suspension has been lifted and we would like to apologise for any inconvenience caused.’ 

In September, when the new law came into force, furious locals in Wales spray painted over signs for the 20mph limit – as lorry drivers also vowed to show their opposition by driving at 19mph.

Motorists reported feeling scared to drive on roads amid the threat of penalties and widespread confusion about the new rules. 

Photos showed furious drivers fighting back against the scheme by vandalising the newly-erected speed limit signs themselves.

Drivers taking to the road were also left confused as many local authorities failed to put up the new signs ahead of the 20mph limit coming into force. 

Some drivers said they were ‘scared’ to go out in case of being trapped by police, static cameras and mobile speed vans, with one elderly couple having cancelled their trip to Aberystwyth to visit family due to their fear of getting a £100 fine. 

MailOnline has contacted Sterling Insurance for comment.  

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