Penalty points – all you need to know

We all dread receiving points on our driving licence. But some men and women swerve the difficulty with a radical manoeuvre – they basically do not bother having a licence in the initial place.

A single motorist from Lewisham in south-east London has managed to amass a massive 40 points for 12 distinct motoring offences, in spite of not holding either a full or provisional licence.

The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IMA) discovered the case after submitting a Freedom of Details request to the DVLA asking about for particulars of highest penalty point holders.

The Lewisham driver’s offences include speeding in a 30mph zone and driving without having insurance.

He is far from alone. The second-highest penalty points holder with no licence is from the Stockport area, and has 33 penalty points for 6 various offences.

These consist of repeatedly failing to disclose information as to the identity of the driver, and becoming caught speeding in a 30mph zone.

But it is not just those who do not have licences who rack up points, of course. The highest points-holder in England and Wales is a man from Liverpool who holds 45 penalty points on a full driving licence. He collected 6 points on 5 occasions for failing to supply information about the identity of the driver, and 6 points on 3 other occasions for speeding in a 30mph zone.

How do penalty points operate?

When it comes to driving, points absolutely don’t imply prizes.

If you are convicted of a motoring offence, such as breaking the speed limit, you can be fined and your driving licence can be ‘endorsed’ with penalty points.

The a lot more serious the offence you’ve committed, the more penalty points you’ll get. For example, you will get 3 points if you’re caught utilizing a automobile with a defective tyre, but 10 points if you’re in charge of a car with an alcohol level above the legal limit.

You have to declare any penalty points you get to your insurer. The a lot more points you have, the higher your premiums will be.

Click right here for a full list of motoring offences, conviction codes and penalty points.

These will keep on your licence for between 4 and 11 years, depending on what sort of offence you’ve committed.

For example, endorsements must stay on your licence for 4 years from the date of conviction if the offence:

• is for reckless or harmful driving


• or if it final results in disqualification.

If you haven’t been convicted, then endorsements need to keep on your licence for 4 years from the date the offence was committed.

Points have to stay on your licence for 11 years from the date of conviction if the offence is:

• Drink driving or drug driving


• Causing death by careless driving even though beneath the influence of drink or drugs


• Causing death by careless driving then failing to give a specimen for evaluation.

When your points have expired, you can only take away them from your licence by sending it to DVLA and obtaining a new 1.

Dirty dozen

If you create up 12 or far more penalty points within a 3-year period, you can be disqualified from driving.

A court will choose how long you can be disqualified for, but if you have 12 or much more points you could be banned for:

• 6 months if you’ve got 12 penalty points or a lot more within 3 years


• 12 months if you have got a second disqualification inside 3 years


• 2 years if you have got a third disqualification.

You’ll have to apply for a new licence and possibly take your test once more if you’re disqualified from driving for much more than 56 days.

If you are a new driver, then your licence can be revoked if you get 6 or much more points inside 2 years of passing your test. If this takes place, you will have to apply for a new provisional licence and pass an additional theory and sensible test to get your full licence back again.

If you have got points on your provisional licence, these will be carried over to your complete licence when you pass your test.

Avoiding points

If you’re caught speeding, you will generally be fined £60 and have 3 penalty points applied to your licence.

But you might be able to avoid obtaining points on your licence by attending a half-day Speed Awareness course.

You’ll only be invited to take a course if, in the previous 3 years, you haven’t been convicted of any other speeding offences, and if you didn’t exceed the legal limit by a stated quantity.

If you total the course, you will not be fined or have any penalty points on your licence.

You will have to pay to attend, although. The price typically ranges from £60 to £100.

Premium punishment

Be aware that going on a speed awareness course may well not defend you from higher insurance coverage premiums.

You need to let your insurer know about your offence, which implies they could put up the price of your cover – though probably not by as significantly as if you’d got points on your licence and not taken the course.

Does that square with your knowledge? Have you got any other experiences of penalty points that you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you in the box below…

Penalty points – all you need to know