Tag: Exceptional Hardship

Almost half of drivers with 12 points keep their licence

If you’ve been caught speeding and have racked up 12 points then you’ll probably be wondering: ‘Is there anything I can do to save my driving licence?’ The good news is that almost half of all people with 12 points on their licence manage to avoid disqualification, so your chances are good as long as you get the right advice and representation.

According to Brake and Direct Line, 43% of drivers with 12 points manage to keep their licence. Here we explore how you too could be able to keep your licence with 12 points.

Mitigating circumstances

In some cases there can be considered to be mitigating circumstances for speeding. These mitigating factors can include the speed not being excessive, there being only light traffic on the road at the time of the offence, or even a momentary lapse in concentration.

Exceptional hardship

In cases where exceptional hardship would be caused by driving disqualification, the courts can decide to apply the points but not disqualify the driver. This case can be argued if this would lead to you losing your job or being unable to work.

Flimsy evidence

In some cases a speeding charge can be disputed on the basis of flimsy evidence. Laser detectors and other speed detection devices can sometimes be overruled in court when the evidence is not entirely clear-cut.

Get the best representation

While a lot of people are able to keep their driving licence in certain cases, you need to put forward the best possible defence that you can. In order to do so you should get yourself the best representation so that you get the best advice and have the best chance in court. A barrister will be able to help build your case and argue that you should not be disqualified on the basis of mitigating circumstances and exceptional hardship.

Get a free quote for representation from Barristers4u today and you could save yourself from disqualification and all of the headaches that come along with this.

Photo: driving by fo.ol licensed under Creative commons 2

Save Money And Use A Barrister To Avoid A Driving Ban Or Disqualification

Due to recent changes in the law you can now go directly to a barrister for legal advice or representation therefore saving you hundreds of pounds in solicitor fees. Our barristers can provide you a free no obligation quote for any potential driving ban or disqualification which can be a fixed fee or hourly rate. This all depends on your individual circumstances and you can request this because we’ve access to over a 1000 barristers in over 200 chambers in England and Wales.

Speeding offences are the most common road traffic offence in the UK, with around 55,000 motorists summoned to court for speeding offences every year. If you wish to contest a speeding ticket you cannot simply use the excuse “I didn’t realise I was speeding” as your defence because any barrister won’t even consider contesting this in court. Our barristers are aware of valid grounds of contesting a speeding ticket and we can challenge the accuracy of the speed camera as one factor of the case.

Another common offence is careless and dangerous driving where the police are often to quick to form an opinion without giving full consideration to all the evidence. Many of our clients have gone on to win these cases often with the Crown Prosecution Service dropping the charges before the case has even begun.

The next common case is failure to identify the driver and just because you’ve been charged with this doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve done anything wrong. Because there could be insufficient information in the date, time and location of the alleged traffic offence. All information should be precise and missing information can result in the prosecution failing.

Another very common motoring offence is a totting-up disqualification. Once you’ve reached 12 points on your driving licence the court will immediately impose a driving ban for a minimum of 6 months. If you are found in this unfortunate situation then you need to try and convince the magistrates not to disqualify you from driving. The only reason that can be used is if evidence of “Exceptional Hardship” is presented to the court. Our expert barristers can help you work through a list of reasons to present to the judge including how you need your licence for work, if you were to lose your job if you lost your licence, if other employees depend on you, number of years driving etc.

Mobile phone offences have increased dramatically over the last 10 years with the influx of mobile phones. This includes using the phone whilst driving either speaking or texting. But mobile offences can be a little confusing because were you actually driving at the time or was you stationary, were you actually on a public road, can the police actually prove you were using the phone and lastly was the phone being using hands-free.

One of the most serious motoring offences is driving without insurance. But there are some loopholes here our barristers can help you with in your defence. These include vehicle ownership, fleet insurance or motor trader policy, accidental (insurer cancelled the policy) and misled i.e. confusing policy wording.

Call us today for expert legal advice and a free no obligation quote to see if you can challenge your motoring offence and let Barristers 4U find the right legal representation for you.