Driving Whilst Disqualified: What are Your Defences?

The majority of police cars in the UK are now fitted with a Vehicle Registration Recognition System that can scan the registration number of a vehicle and can establish via the DVLA database:

• who the car is registered to;
• if it is taxed;
• if it has an MOT Certificate; and
• if it is insured
• the names & genders of drivers insured to drive the vehicle

If there are any concerns the Police Officer will be notified and will proceed to stop the suspect vehicle.

If you are found guilty of driving while disqualified, you are at risk of severe penalties including an immediate prison sentence. It is also an offence to obtain a driving licence whilst disqualified - if you do so you may face a separate prosecution for this.

Whatever the outcome of your case it will have a significant impact on your life, job or business and probably your family.

By contacting Frank Rogers Law you get the benefit of my many years of experience of defending drivers across England & Wales. I will carefully examine the circumstances surrounding the allegation to put forward a defence or an argument that will achieve the best possible outcome for you based on your personal circumstances.

You can only be convicted if there is sufficient evidence to show that you were:

• driving a motor vehicle; and
• disqualified from driving at the time

So, I will be checking the following:

• do the Police have evidence that you personally (as opposed to someone else) were driving?
• do they have sufficient evidence to identify you as the person who was driving?
• was there a disqualification in force at the time or had it run out?
• can the Police show that you knew you were banned from driving?
• has the Police or Prosecution made mistakes that could enable me to have the case thrown out?

If you can prove that you were not aware of the disqualification, the Prosecution may have to drop the case. It is possible that you were totally unaware of proceedings that led to you being disqualified from driving:

• were the proceedings sent to an address you no longer reside at?
• was the Notice stating that you had been banned from driving sent to an address you no longer reside at?
• you must obviously not have been in Court (or been represented by a Solicitor) when the driving ban was imposed

The importance of always notifying the DVLA when you move house so that the address to which a vehicle is registered & the address for your driving licence cannot be overstated. I have been instructed by countless clients who have been convicted of offences (to which they often had a defence) & banned from driving without their knowledge because all documentation has gone to an address they no longer occupy. I can, in those circumstances, advise on the procedure to be followed to set aside such convictions & cancel the ban until all matters have been properly considered by Magistrates when you are present. 

Succeeding with this argument can be difficult without representation by a Solicitor who specialises in dealing with driving offences.

If you have to plead guilty, then I will aim to present a strong case for avoiding a custodial sentence & possibly also avoiding an additional driving ban.

A disqualification takes immediate effect from when the Magistrates announce the sentence.

Not necessarily because you cannot start driving again until you have your licence back. 

You could be charged of driving other than in accordance with a licence, the punishment for which is less than if you had no actual entitlement to a licence.

You must apply to DVLA for the return of your driving licence & should do so as the ban nears its end.

The success of an Application for the early return of your licence depends on several factors including:

• the length of the driving ban;
• the period of the ban that has elapsed;
• the overall circumstances;
• the reason why you need to be able to drive

If you want to make an application for the early return of your licence, please contact me & I will advise you as to your prospects of success & then guide you through the whole process.

My client was Mr. P who had served custodial sentences for non-driving related matters. Without representation at Court on 4.12.2019 he was banned from driving for 23 months for a drink-drive offence. On 14.12.2019 his wife drove them to a shopping centre but as they got in the car to leave there was a row & she stormed off leaving him in the car with a lot of Christmas presents on show. He started to drive home and when nearly there, Police Officers stopped him because they had established that the car was insured only for a female to drive it. He was charged with driving while disqualified & without insurance. He avoided an immediate or suspended prison sentence. He was banned from driving for 29 months (thereby increasing the existing ban by a few months) & given a Community Order for 12 months.

I was recommended by a business colleague to contact Frank Rogers when I was charged with driving while disqualified within days of being given a 23-month ban. I fully expected to go to prison when I attended Court & brought a bag with my belongings in. Frank was superb. He argued that given previous sentences I had served in prison it held no fears for me & that a short custodial sentence would be of no benefit nor have any real impact on me. He had prepared a compelling argument based on alternative sentencing options & persuaded the Magistrates to follow the course of action he suggested. I was impressed with his expertise, the way he prepared my case & the outstanding way he spoke in Court. I am hugely indebted to Frank Rogers & would have no hesitation in recommending him to anyone being prosecuted for a driving offence.

They include:

• a fine of up to £5,000.00;
• 6 months imprisonment;
• a disqualification is discretionary, but usually inevitable & for longer than the current driving ban

In exceptional cases, Magistrates may refrain from disqualification and impose 6 penalty points.

Here are aggravating factors that can affect the seriousness of your offence, which has been discussed in detail in the Sentencing Guidelines:

• Previous convictions, having regard to:

      a) the nature of the offence to which the conviction relates and its relevance to the current offence; and

      b) the time that has elapsed since the conviction

• The offence was committed whilst on bail
  

Please call, email me or complete the Contact box & I will then:

• call you to discuss your case in a free initial telephone consultation; or
• respond by email; or
• offer you a one-hour Zoom video conference; or
• agree to take your case on & agree on a Fee for representing you

It is important to remember that by seeking legal advice at the earliest opportunity you can help to ensure that any complex legal arguments favourable to you are identified and successfully argued on your behalf.

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