Penalty Points & Totting Up

Penalty points are endorsed on your driving licence for a range of motoring offences and remain on the licence for either three or eleven years depending on the offence. When totalling up points within a three-year period, the relevant date is the date of the offence — not the date of conviction. The court must disqualify a driver for at least six months when they reach twelve or more points, unless it is satisfied that exceptional hardship would result from doing so. A second totting up ban within three years carries a minimum twelve-month disqualification, and a third a minimum of two years.

• Minimum six-month ban for 12 or more points within three years
• Minimum twelve-month ban for a second totting disqualification within three years
• Minimum two-year ban for a third totting disqualification within three years
• Points are counted from the date of the offence, not the date of conviction
• New drivers — a ban applies after just six points within the first two years

The exceptional hardship argument is the principal way of avoiding a totting up disqualification. The hardship must be exceptional — above and beyond the ordinary inconvenience that anyone would face from losing their licence. Loss of employment is the most commonly argued ground, but the court requires clear and persuasive evidence — witness statements, letters from employers, financial information, evidence of the impact on dependants. Our solicitors will prepare a thorough and compelling exceptional hardship case on your behalf.

• Loss of employment and the impact on you and your dependants
• The needs of dependants who rely on you for transport
• The impact on a business you own or operate
• The impact on employees who depend on your ability to drive
• Medical needs that require you to drive — yours or a dependant's
• Evidence from employers, family members and medical professionals

If you have already received a totting up disqualification, the points that led to the ban are wiped clean when the disqualification ends. However, subsequent offences can lead to further bans. Our solicitors can also advise on applying to the court to have a disqualification lifted early — a possibility after completing a specified proportion of the ban — where there are compelling grounds to do so.