What is a discretionary Driving Ban and When is It Applied?

The range of driving offences is vast that range from not stopping at a red light to speeding over the allowed and driving while when under the influence alcohol and many numerous other offences that are committed every day on UK roads. Certain driving offenses are punished by penalty points on an license of the offender  Easy Quizzz, however certain offences can be punished by a discretionary driving ban. This article will discuss the specifics of what a discretionary driving ban is, and when it is applicable and what driving offenses will most likely lead to the ban being handed down.

An discretionary ban on driving one that can be imposed, but doesn’t have to be imposed by a judge in response to certain driving offenses. The court is guided by the guidelines that are given to them, and has the discretion in deciding what ban needs to be handed down to the perpetrator. The court will consider aspects like how long the person has been convicted of any prior traffic violations or is likely to be guilty of driving offences in the near future as well as the seriousness of the driving offense and the defense of the offender as well as any other factors the court believe are relevant. If the court decides to use their authority to issue a driving ban to the offender, then the ban will come into effect.

Some driving violations are punishable only by fines and penalty points however, the types of offences the court might decide to punish with an (discretionary) ban could include reckless driving and driving without insurance. traffic light violations (such as not stopping at an intersection) or driving without having a valid insurance certificate and speeding offence and driving while disqualified, not reporting an accident transferble to anoth, and driving other than the rules of their driving license.

A lot of people, when they are found guilty of the specific offense they are accused of, try to avoid receiving a driving ban at the discretion of the court by pleading “exceptional hardship”. In other words, the defendant is claiming they will be subject to extraordinary hardship in the event that they are denied their driver’s licence because of the ban. To be able to prove that exceptional hardship could occur the Defendant must demonstrate how losing their driver’s license could be more severe than just being fired from their position. This will not be taken as an argument since the court would argue that the defendant ought to be aware of this risk prior to committing the offense. Therefore, the defendant must be able to prove how losing their driving license could be detrimental to the lives of the people who live around them, such as elderly relatives who depend upon them (and their vehicle) for transportation on hospital trips.

When deciding whether or not to impose any kind of discretionary ban the court will take a take a look at every instance and decide in light of all relevant factors using the guidelines that are made available to them.

Posted by Jonathan