Endorsements,
penalty points and disqualification
If
you are convicted of a motoring offence, the court can endorse your driving licence
with penalty points or order a period of disqualification from driving. The details
are entered on your driving record and your paper driving licence or photocard
D740 paper counterpart document. In
addition to paying a fine or fixed penalty, your driving licence will be endorsed
with a penalty ranging from three to eleven points or a period disqualification
depending on the seriousness of the offence. Totting-upIf you incur
12 or more penalty points within a period of three years you will be liable to
be disqualified under the totting-up system. Information on your driving
entitlement and endorsements are sent to the courts and police on request. Endorsements
and disqualificationsThe amount of time
in which an endorsement remains on your licence depends on the type of offence
committed. The date in which the endorsement starts also depends on the type of
offence. Endorsements
must remain on a licence for 11 years from date of conviction if the offence is: - drinking/drugs
and driving (shown on the licence as DR10, DR20, DR30 and DR80)
- causing
death by careless driving whilst under the influence of drink/drugs (shown on
the licence as CD40, CD50 and CD60)
- causing
death by careless driving, then failing to provide a specimen for analysis (shown
on the licence as CD70)
Endorsements
must remain on a licence for four years from date of conviction if the offence
is: - reckless/dangerous
driving (shown on the licence as DD40, DD60 and DD80)
- offences
resulting in disqualification
- disqualified
from holding a full licence until a driving test has been passed
Endorsements
must remain on a licence for four years from the date of offence in all other
cases. | Disqualification
for alcohol related offencesIf you are
disqualified for one or more alcohol related offences, the Driver and Vehicle
Licensing Agency (DVLA) will carry out medical enquiries before a new licence
is granted. These related offences are: - disqualified
with a blood level over 200mg/100ml (or equivalent in breath or urine)
- disqualified
twice in ten years for certain alcohol related offences
- disqualified
for failing or refusing to give a specimen
Mutual
recognition of driving disqualifications with other countriesSince 11
October 2004 there has been mutual recognition between Great Britain (GB) &
Northern Ireland (NI) of driving disqualifications. This allows: - recognition
in GB of disqualifications which were imposed under NI jurisdiction
- endorsement
of GB counterparts issued to NI licence holders. An NI driving licence holder
may apply for a GB counterpart by completing form D9 (available from DVLA). This
can be kept with their NI licence and will allow them to avail themselves of the
fixed penalty scheme for certain types of offence
- revocation
of an NI licence in conformity with the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act 1995
- revocation
of an NI licence on grounds of disability and prospective disability
Reciprocal
provisions came into force in NI at the same time as those made in GB. |
