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I’ve got nine penalty points on my licence – What can I do to avoid a Disqualification?

“I’ve got nine penalty points on my licence – What can I do to avoid a Disqualification?”

is a common question amongst the new enquiry calls we take within the firm. With the introduction of new ‘driving whilst using a mobile phone’ legislation coming in to place, alongside smart motorway speed cameras – it is much easier to accumulate points on your licence than in previous years. For the majority of motorists, facing a driving disqualification can have an immeasurable impact on their personal and working life. If you have found yourself in this position, it is important to establish what options are available to you and how is best to proceed for you personally.

Why would having Nine Points on my licence be an issue?

What does having 9 points on your licence mean?

 

Any motorist who has held their licence for longer than two years (not a new driver), is permitted to hold no more than eleven penalty points on their licence. Once a motorist reaches 12 or more points, they are subject to a ‘totting up’ disqualification of six months, pursuant to Section 35 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. This disqualification period increases to one year if the motorist has one previous driving disqualification to be taken into account and two years, if the motorist has more than one previous driving disqualification to be taken into account.

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If you receive any further fixed penalty notices/conditional offer letters for any offences once you have reached nine points; you can no longer accept the penalty as you would be subject to disqualification. On occasion, you may initially be able to temporarily accept a conditional offer, but this will be refunded and you will be notified of the same once the position of your licence is checked. You will need to attend Court for any motoring offence, once you exceed nine points, for the Court to consider whether or not to impose a disqualification from driving. This also gives you the best chance of retaining your licence, as you will have the opportunity to put your case forward. If you have been charged with a further offence, we would always recommend getting in contact with a motoring defence solicitor as soon as possible, to ensure we have ample time to ensure your case is in the best possible position for your Court Hearing.

 

How long are penalty points on my licence considered active?

The Court will only ever take into consideration any points on your licence that are active on your licence at the time of the commission of the offence, not at your hearing. Therefore, if any penalty points have dropped off between the offence date and your Court date, they will still be considered as active on your licence by the Court. Penalty points will remain on your driving licence for four years from the date you are sentenced/accept a conditional offer and will be visible when you conduct a driving licence check. However, these points are only active and taken into consideration by the Court for the first three years.

Will having nine penalty points on my licence impact my insurance policy?

 

In short yes, any endorsements on your driving record will likely increase the cost of your insurance policy, as you will be perceived as a higher risk driver than those with a clean licence. This is a result of the insurance company somewhat preparing for potentially having to pay out for a future claim, should it arise.

 

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Use our contact page to send us a message or call us on 0333 443 2366 for a friendly chat.

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How can I avoid a disqualification once I have nine points?

 

The simple answer would be to not obtain any further endorsements. This is of course not always that easy! If you have been charged with a further offence and thus are risk of a driving disqualification you have a few options available to you to try and avoid a driving disqualification.

Pleading Not Guilty

If you are looking to advance a not guilty plea to the alleged offence, we can of course assist you with this. After entering a plea of not guilty, your matter will be listed for a trial hearing where you will have the opportunity to advance your argument and the prosecution will have theirs. With any case where the charge in being contested, it is crucial that we request and review all the evidence to ensure that we have an in-depth knowledge of your matter. This is imperative to ensure there are no surprises once we attend Court. It is also important to ensure we establish the facts of the case from both your perspective and the prosecution, so we can identify any disparities and raise this where appropriate. This also further aids us in being able to build a strong defence for you, which in turn strengthens the presentation of your matter in Court. Once your Court hearing is listed we will also send a Barrister/Solicitor to Court with on the day to make verbal representations on your behalf. This often takes away a degree of stress from the Defendant.

 

Pleading Guilty

If you are entering a plea of guilty to any offence, which would cause you to reach or exceed twelve points you only have one option available. This would be to advance an Exceptional Hardship Argument. When considering whether or not to grant this argument, the Court will need to be convinced the hardship you would face as a result of driving disqualification would be exceptional in nature. If you would just be inconvenienced by a driving disqualification, it is unlikely the Court will rule in your favour. If a driving disqualification would have a substantial impact on your life, it is important the Court are aware of every element of this. This includes not only the impact on you but also those close to you, who are arguably suffering unjustly as a result of the commission of the offence.

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Talk to Caddick Davies Solicitors today

Use our contact page to send us a message or call us on 0333 443 2366 for a friendly chat.

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Exceptional Hardship

Whilst every case is individual and won on its own merits, we generally find most people seek to reply upon the below grounds when advancing an Exceptional Hardship Argument:

Employment:

The loss of a person’s employment alone would not be sufficient enough to demonstrate Exceptional Hardship, as this is deemed an inevitable result of being disqualified from driving. However, if the persons loss of employment would cause the company/business they work for to face hardship, this would strengthen the argument. For example;

  • If your company has paid for you to undertake training and a disqualification would cause them financial hardship to fund training for another team member
  • If you are a specialist in your field of employment and it would take a substantial amount of time to find a replacement member of staff, which would in turn have a negative impact of the company
  • If you need to drive throughout the day to carry out your duties. For example, a taxi/HGV driver.
  • If the company only has a small team and would face financial difficulty if you were unable to work.
  • If you provide a colleague with transportation to work and a disqualification would impact their ability to retain employment
  • If you provide essential care such as a nurse or doctor and it will not be in the public interest to disqualified from driving due to the effect it may have on your patients

It is also important to consider if would struggle to obtain alternative employment in your chosen carer field without you licence. This is more prevalent if you have worked in the same carer field for a substantial amount of time. For example, if you have trained/obtained qualifications to obtain employment in your chosen carer field, but would struggle to find alternative employment to transfer these skills too.

If you work unsociable hours and would therefore be unable to reliably commute to your place of work, this would also be relevant. It is important however to note, that the Court will regularly require evidence of a lack of public transport to consider this as part of your argument. This evidence can be demonstrated by way of Google Maps or contract of employment outlining your working hours.

If you are the owner/director of your company, it is also important to consider  the impact a disqualification could have on your clients and employees. It may strengthen your argument if you have built up a loyal client base, which you would be a risk of losing if you were disqualified and could no longer conduct the service your provided. This could be evidenced by way of supporting statements/character references from clients. If your employ a number of a staff, who’s jobs would be at risk if you were disqualified, this may also strengthen your argument. This can be evidenced by way of a supporting statement from your employees, outlining the impact loss of employment would have on them and those they support.

Finances:

Whilst it is inevitable a disqualification would have a financial impact, if a disqualification would cause you and/or those around you to face financial hardship, the court will take this into consideration. It is important to make to court aware of every aspect of your financial situation to ensure they have a full understanding of the consequences you would face. For example:

  • If you have any personal loans or credit cards which you would be unable to pay and fall into arrears for
  • If you reside alone and a disqualification would result in loss of employment/income which would render you unable to pay for essential bills such a rent/utility.
  • If you reside in a mortgaged property and would be at risk of losing your home if you were unable to make mortgage payments
  • If you reside in a rented property and would be at risk of being homeless if you were unable to make rent payments to your landlord
  • If you are the sole or main earner of your household and you would be unable to financially support your family if you were disqualified
  • If you assist anyone financially and would be unable to do so if you were disqualified, such as contributing towards rent, tuition fees or sending money to family in another country.

 

It is important to note the Court will also take into consideration any savings you may have and whether your savings are sufficient enough to financially support you for the duration of your disqualification.

You can evidence your financial situation by in many ways such as bank statements, loan/mortgage agreements and rental agreements/utility bills. It is important to ensure you evidence sufficiently any financial support you offer to other people. For example, if you are assisting someone with the tuition payments, you would need to evidence to cost of these payments, you paying the money out and obtain a supporting statement from the person you assist.

Caregiving/Medical Conditions:

If you rely on your licence to provide caregiving to someone and would be unable to do so if disqualified, the court will also take this in to consideration. A number of duties can fall under caregiving such as but not limited to:

  • If you are a registered part or full time career for someone
  • If you assist a family member or friend with transportation to medical appointments
  • If you visit someone to assist them with tasks such as cooking cleaning or carrying out essential daily responsibilities and would be unable to continue to do so if you were disqualified from driving
  • If you assist someone with transportation to school or work because they are unable to take public transport due to a medical reason

In order to evidence the assistance, you provide sufficiently, it would be beneficial to obtain a supporting statement from the person you assist and also medical records to demonstrate any conditions they suffer from.

If you suffer from a medical condition yourself and require the use of your vehicle to access hospital or medical appointments, this also may help strengthen your exceptional hardship argument. This should also be referenced if you believe the use of your vehicle assists you with a medical condition you have. For example, if you struggle walking long distances so rely upon use of your vehicle to carry out essential tasks.

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Talk to Caddick Davies Solicitors today

Use our contact page to send us a message or call us on 0333 443 2366 for a friendly chat.

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What would happen if I am unsuccessful with my not guilty plea and already have nine points on my licence?

If you are looking to advance a not guilty plea to an offence, which could leave you subject to a driving disqualification under totting up procedure, we would generally advise preparing an exceptional hardship argument as a ‘plan b’. This can be advanced (if applicable) at your Court hearing and further strengthens your chance of retaining your licence. It can also generally be run at the same hearing to avoid further Court costs.

Appealing a conviction

 

Conclusion – Nine points on my licence: How to try and avoid disqualification”

If you presently have nine points and have been charged we strongly recommend getting legal representation. Our team at Caddick Davies Solicitors is happy to take your call and support you with any motoring offence. Please reach out to our friendly expert team is here to offer a free consolation to talk through your options with no pressure to engage our services.

If you would like to discuss your case further, please don’t hesitate to contact our office for a free consultation on 0333 443 2366.

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Talk to Caddick Davies Solicitors today

Use our contact page to send us a message or call us on 0333 443 2366 for a friendly chat.

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Motoring Lawyer at Caddick Davies Solicitors
Caddick Davies is recognised as one of England and Wales’ leading motoring law firms, offering specialist Speeding Solicitors, Drink Driving Solicitors & Dangerous Driving Solicitors.We provide advice and representation on all motoring offences including speeding, the avoidance of disqualification on penalty points or “totting up” (exceptional hardship), driving without due care and attention (careless driving), dangerous driving, drink driving, as well as a range of services related to medical revocation of a driving licence.
Neil Davies

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