Driving whilst disqualified

[Jonnyedxb9s]

Firstly I know its not big nor is it clever, but I had received a driving ban for "totting up" points.  I would have been able to continue driving had the solicitor actually turned up to court!

 

I've checked my driving licence online today and I can see the requisite offences that got me to 12. However, only the first two (SP30 & MS90) have the points attached to them (3&6) the last offence SP20 has the fine amount £166 and ZERO points attached to it.

 

Now I need to know if anyone knows WHY the last offence has zero points on my record as surely this only totals 9? Is it a recording error? Should I actually have been banned?

 

I'm going to phone the court on Monday to find out but in the meantime it's causing a lot of stress and aggro just not knowing

 

TIA

 

[BazzaS]

SP20 is a speeding offnce, not that of exceeding the posted speed limit for cars, but of exceeding the speed limit for that type of vehicle (so, usually not a car, but equally not a goods or passenger vehicle, which would be a SP10 or SP40 respectively). Were you driving a van +/- (if in a car) towing a trailer?.

 

perhaps the key issue is that it still MUST (unless they impose a disqualification) impose a minimum of 3 points .......

 

So, they may have decided to disqualify (which would explain the zero points, as with a disqualification they don't have to endorse points), or this may be a reflection of the 'totting up' and then 'resetting' the points to zero for once you get you licence back.

 

Anyhow, I can only see this being a consequence of repeat offending, and I'm still not clear how this is the fault of your solicitor, rather than you ...........

Equally, why have you titled this "driving while disqualified" ..... is there some key info that you've neglected to mention to make this about driving while disqualified?.

Edited April 23, 2022 by BazzaS

[BazzaS]

Correction, re-reading it, they MUST go through the totting-up procedure, but with an important caveat......

 

"But the court must note the statutory obligation to disqualify those repeat offenders who would, were penalty points imposed, be liable to the mandatory “totting” disqualification, and should ordinarily prioritise the “totting” disqualification ahead of a discretionary disqualification.

If the offender has 12 or more penalty points the court must order the offender to be disqualified for not less than the minimum period unless the court is satisfied, having regard to all the circumstances, that there are grounds for mitigating the normal consequences of the conviction and thinks fit to order him to be disqualified for a shorter period or not to order him to be disqualified – s.35(1) RTOA 1988."

 

https://www.sentencingcouncil.org.uk/explanatory-material/magistrates-court/item/road-traffic-offences-disqualification/3-totting-up-disqualification/

 

So, they must use the totting-up procedure, but in exceptional circumstances can THEN choose the effect of the totting up, choosing  not to disqualify, or disqualify for less than 6 months in exceptional circumstances.

 

Edited April 24, 2022 by BazzaS

[Manxman in exile]

@Jonnyedxb9s  -  presumably you were in court when the magistrates made their decision?  What did they actually say?  Didn't you attempt an exceptional hardship argument if they were going for a totting ban?  And if you did, what did they say in response?  How did they explain their decision?

 

(As others have suggested, it's extrememly unlikely that if your solicitor had turned up that you would have got a different outcome.  They can't really say or do anything that you couldn't, and magistrates are more likely to listen to you than a hired mouthpiece.  But if they were meant to turn up and didn't, complain.

[BazzaS]

Difficult to comment further without the OP coming back, and engaging with the thread .......