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Fines for those who speed in the most serious cases in England and Wales will rise by 50% from 24 April.
Under new sentencing guidelines for magistrates' courts, published by the Sentencing Council, those who are caught driving at 41mph in a 20mph zone or 101mph on a motorway could be fined 150% of their weekly income.
At present, the current limit for a fine is a week's salary, up to £1,000, or £2,500 if they are caught on a motorway. The upper cash limit will remain the same when the new rules come into force in April.
The changes to the fine structure comes after the Sentencing Council held a consultation in 2016, with feedback indicating that the current guidelines "did not properly take into account the increase in potential harm that can result as speed above the speed limit increases".
Speeding offences subject to the changes:
"We welcome the change in sentencing guidelines for gross speeders. Anyone who breaks the limit excessively is a danger to every other road user and is unnecessarily putting lives at risk," said RAC road safety spokesman Pete Williams. "Hopefully, hitting these offenders harder in the pocket will make them think twice before doing it again in the future.
"While greater sentences for excessive speeders are obviously a deterrent, the best deterrent of all is more effective enforcement," he added.
Scott Chesworth, operations director at vehicle tracking provider Ram Tracking. also welcomed the changes.
"Safety should always be a number one priority for businesses with fleets. The decision to significantly increase the penalty for drivers that exceed the speed limit sends a clear message that such behaviour is not acceptable," he said. "Whilst fines and other sanctions are an obvious deterrent to those intent on speeding, managers should still put procedures in place to tackle the problem.
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