Expert Drink Driving Solicitors London

Unfortunately the court’s hands are tied to an extent when it comes to sentencing and if you plead guilty or are found guilty then they have no discretion and must impose a disqualification of at least 12 months.  The main ways you can avoid a disqualification is via successfully defending your case (which is what we specialise in at Motoring Defence Solicitors) or if special reasons apply.

It is the evidential testing of breath, blood or urine that determines whether a driver is over the limit. A constable makes a requirement for one of the three tests to be undertaken at a police station or a hospital, and where the result is positive, i.e. over the prescribed limit, the driver will be charged and required to attend court to answer the charge.

An immediate custodial sentence can be imposed in the more serious of drink driving case, where a driver has provided a particularly high reading in breath, blood or urine, and/or substantial damage or loss has been caused by the drink driver’s actions.

Anyone with a previous conviction for a similar offence, particularly those with more recent convictions, is at higher risk of imprisonment.

Drink driving carries a mandatory minimum disqualification of 12 months.  No matter how remorseful the driver, or how lenient the sentencing bench, following a guilty plea, the legislation is strictly applied. 

If, however, a driver enters a not guilty plea, on the basis that they contest the drink driving charge, the outcome is decided by the bench of magistrates or a district judge at a trial hearing.

 A driver will either be acquitted and therefore walk free in the same position as before they were charged with the offence, or they will be convicted and immediately disqualified from driving.

For legal purposes, the disqualification is relevant for 10 years. What we mean by this is that if you commit another offence of  a similar nature within a 10 year period it has the effect of automatically increasing the minimum term of disqualification from 12 months to 3 years.  A conviction of this nature is classed as a criminal conviction and will mean you have a criminal record. Who has access to this record depends on the level of access they have when making enquiries.

Drink driving penalties range from a fine (unlimited, but means tested for drink driving), through to community orders and custodial sentences.  Sentencing should reflect the seriousness of the offence, but will largely be determined by the reading provided by the drink driver in breath, blood or urine, taking into account any previous offending behaviour.  A detailed case in mitigation should provide information to the bench in respect of a defendant’s character and the impact upon them, their families, children and other third parties affected by any sentence passed.