Court Letter - Unknowingly Prosecuted

[minmac]

Hi,

 

Yesterday I visited my parents and picked up some mail that was there for me.

1 letter was from DVLA it said

''Failure to give identity as to driver - Bedfordshire

Court Date 23/12/2015

 

The court have informed us on the above date you were convicted of the above offence. We have updated your drivers record.......

 

I checked my drivers record and I have been given 6 points and a £700 fine and it states it was an offence last April. Doesnt state the issuing court or any other info.

 

I've absolutely no idea what this is for. I've had no letter/s what so ever about speeding, giving drivers info, going to court or anything. This is the very first letter I have received.

 

I don't live in bedfordshire but I do work in Bedfordshire

 

What do I do? Who do I call?

 

Thank You

 

And i've just looked on my FB (lol) and it seems I wasnt even working on that date last year, I was with OH and son at home and the park in Northamptonshire

[Bazooka Boo]

You don't call anyone, you MUST keep everything in writing and get a paper trail of evidence together.

 

Typical profiteering DVLA, contact them demand the issuing courts details, then get onto the court demanding some answers to your questions.

[minmac]

This is a screenshot from my drivers record.

[Bazooka Boo]

Get onto the DVLA and demand the name of the issuing court.

[minmac]

Thanks, I'll call the DVLA tomorrow. Hope I can get this sorted. I'm panicking

[Surfer01]

Why was the post sent to your parent's adress and not to where you live which is where the vehicle should be registered?

[minmac]

I guess its because I only updated my address on my drivers licence last month, didnt even realise until I had to show it to my foster childs social worker she pointed out it still had my old address on it. My car has always been registered at my address I live at.

[*RainbowTears*]

What an awful surprise for you!

 

Now what address is on your Driving licence?

 

If it is your parents address, how long ago did you leave that address?

 

If you updated your address once you left parents address, how long ago did you do this?

 

As due to the DVLA writing to you at your parents address, they must have some reason to do so. (As above).

 

So I would do as the other posters suggested contact DVLA & do keep everything in writing.

 

Once you've found out which Court it is, you can then start getting this sorted out.

 

Do make sure your DL address is current.

 

Now try to stop panicking, as you becoming stressed isn't going to help you. So have a calming cuppa & try putting everything aside until tomorrow.

 

Good luck!

[minmac]

Thanks,

I moved out of my parents house 2 years ago (I only stayed there a short time in between moving), I just forgot to change my address on DL when I moved out. When we have bought cars (we've had 2) in the past 2 years we have put them at our home address.

My DL as of last month shows my home address. (before that it had my parents address on it).

My parents are really good at keeping any stray letters that arrive there for me and they are sure none have come before this from DVLA or court etc.

 

I've positively never been stopped by the police, or (as far as I know) been caught speeding or anything.

I'm sure its a big mix up I just hope it will be reletively easy to fix/reverse.

[BazzaS]

Hi,

 

Yesterday I visited my parents and picked up some mail that was there for me.

1 letter was from DVLA it said

''Failure to give identity as to driver - Bedfordshire

Court Date 23/12/2015

 

The court have informed us on the above date you were convicted of the above offence. We have updated your drivers record.......

 

I checked my drivers record and I have been given 6 points and a £700 fine and it states it was an offence last April. Doesnt state the issuing court or any other info.

 

I've absolutely no idea what this is for. I've had no letter/s what so ever about speeding, giving drivers info, going to court or anything. This is the very first letter I have received.

 

I don't live in bedfordshire but I do work in Bedfordshire

 

What do I do? Who do I call?

 

Thank You

 

I guess its because I only updated my address on my drivers licence last month, didnt even realise until I had to show it to my foster childs social worker she pointed out it still had my old address on it. My car has always been registered at my address I live at.

 

So, it seems likely a S.172 notice to identify the "driver at time of alleged offence" will have been sent to you as the Registered Keeper of a vehicle. Odd, as it will have gone to your current home, as it follows the address the car's keeper is recorded.

 

You MIGHT be able to get things "wound back" to the NIP stage if you can nominate the driver and the prosecutor doesn't consider they are out of time to prosecute the alleged offence. This would be by making a statutory declaration.

 

This might "open a new can of worms", as you might bring to them attention your failure (for a number of years) to update the address in your driving license : this is an offence for which you could be fined.

 

If the prosecution felt that they could no longer prosecute the driver due to time elapsed : it wouldn't be in the public interest to "let you off the hook" otherwise people would view the "late claim not to have recieved notification" as a valid way to evade driving offence prosecution.

[Raykay]

Court 1080 is Bedfordshire Magistrates Court, Shire Hall, 3 St. Paul's Square, Bedford, MK40 1SQ. phone 01234 319100

[*RainbowTears*]

Updating your DL can be & is overlooked by quite a few off us. I've moved over 35+ times & I've done it myself on a few occasions.

 

At least you've now updated it & is one less thing to worry about.

 

It's a section 172 offence, not giving the drivers details for which you received the 6 points & £700 fine for.

 

Normally there would have been another offence like speeding that you/another would've been contacted about.

 

If you/another did not reply to their letters asking for the drivers details, so they could issue proceedings/out of court fine/course for the speeding, thats when the Section 172 offence is given in its place instead.

 

So tomorrow contact the DVLA & once you find out which Court it was, you can then start to sort this all out.

 

Do let us know how you get on, if you can.

[minmac]

I will let you all know tomorrow what happens. I've not received any letters here or at my parents asking who any driver was for anything. I wasn't at work on the date last year and I definitely wouldn't have been in Bedfordshire for any other reason, I only drive there to go work. :/

 

Court 1080 is Bedfordshire Magistrates Court, Shire Hall, 3 St. Paul's Square, Bedford, MK40 1SQ. phone 01234 319100

 

Thank You, I googled the 1080 but nothing came up.

[minmac]

Hi everyone. Thanks for the advice yesterday. I contacted a few people but the only people that could help were Bedford court.

They said they sent me a letter last year asking for info about who was driving at a certain date but I didn't reply, I explained is not received any letters asking questions or about going to court or anything. She was really quick on saying it's not a problem I can email the court explaining I didn't know about any letters and I'll just get an email back asking me to go to court, swear on a bible I didn't get a letter/s and there and then they will quash it and start a new court case and deal with it there and then.

It seems I went through an average speed area faster than allowed. A bit weird because I wasn't at work on the date in question so have no reason I can think of to be in Bedfordshire (unless I had to go in urgent for something I can't remember), I drive through that village everyday as well so don't know how/why I was speeding but I guess I must have been.

Just waiting for the court to email me back.

I did think it would be more difficult and I thought I would be arguing over not receiving 2 or 3 letters but she was only saying about 1 letter and said its find for me to contest it so not sure if she could see something odd regarding the letters in her screen or something

[Bazooka Boo]

At least you'll be able to put in a defence now.

 

Swear on a bible!

[Raykay]

What should happen when a statutory declaration is accepted by the court, is that the original conviction is quashed (s.14, Magistrates' Courts Act 1980) and the matter referred back to the prosecution for a decision to re-commence proceedings or not.

 

 

What appears to often incorrectly happen - as the OP was told - is that the court just re-open the case (s.142 of the same act) and deal with it then, without any reference to, or decision by, the prosecution.

[*RainbowTears*]

I'm truly glad to hear you will be able to get this sorted out now.

 

+ 1 Raykay.

 

Good luck!

[minmac]

Hi Everyone... just wanted to give an update as to what happened.

 

Got given a court date of April 6th. At the end of March £500 was deducted from my wages :O :O :O part of the original fine. Nearly had a heart attack as I obviously didn't know it was going to be deducted.

 

So I went to court in Northamptonshire and they weren't really interested to be honest. They were just like yes ok conviction quashed and will be reverted to 3 points a £100 fine and £85 court costs.

 

And that was it!! was over and done with in 2 minutes.

Bedfordshire court have to send me a cheque for the deductions from my wages and they said they will do as soon as they get the notification from Northamptonshire court.

 

Thanks Everyone

[Bazooka Boo]

Excellent, well done.