Motoring

Driving is a crucial part of life and we understand the significant impact that the loss of a driving licence can have on an individual, their family and their employment. We would urge anyone facing criminal proceedings for driving offences to instruct a lawyer at the very early stages of the case in order to assist with any attempts to avoid a conviction, disqualification or the imposition of penalty points.

Drink or drug-driving offences

Offences of this nature carry a mandatory disqualification of at least 12 months. It is very important therefore that an experienced lawyer is instructed to properly consider whether the police have fully complied with their obligations and requirements before any plea is entered. It may be that an error in procedure could lead to the prosecution case being flawed.

In cases where a guilty plea is entered, we can also advise about the possibility of a special reasons argument which would enable a court to avoid the imposition of a disqualification. Alternatively we can assist with mitigation, keeping any ban as short as possible and discussing eligibility for the drink-drive rehabilitation course.

Speeding and ‘totting up’ offences

We would urge you to contact us as soon as you become aware that you have been recorded speeding as it may be that there are issues with service of a Notice Of Intended Prosecution which should be raised from the outset. It may also be possible at that stage to avoid prosecution.

Alternatively, if you have received a postal requisition to attend court for a speeding offence, we can assist to advise you about potential defences which include consideration whether appropriate signage was in place and whether any speed control device was properly operational.

If you are guilty of speeding as alleged, we will be able to advise you about sentence and mitigate on your behalf at court in order to keep any sentence as low as possible. Please note that if you accumulate 12 points on your licence within a 3-year period, you are very likely to have your driving licence revoked for 6 months or more as a result of the ‘totting’ procedure. For those who are considered a ‘new driver’ by virtue of passing their driving test less than 2 years ago, their driving licence is likely to be revoked after accumulation of 6 points and a driving test would also need to be re-taken. Our experienced lawyers can advise you in this regard and discuss with you the best options to try and avoid loss of a driving licence, which may include an application for ‘exceptional hardship’ being made on your behalf.

Careless and dangerous driving

For anyone charged with careless or dangerous driving, it is important that proper legal advice is obtained immediately in order to consider whether any offence has been committed and if so, if the appropriate charge has been brought. It is also necessary to consider if any defences apply which should lead to a not guilty plea being entered.

We are experienced in dealing with all driving matters and would welcome inquiries from anyone charged with any offences of this nature.

Our fees

Our fees to provide advice and representation at the Magistrates Court in relation to summary only road traffic offences dealt with at a single hearing.

For cases of this nature, it is generally our policy to agree a fixed fee in advance of the hearing as we are aware that this provides our clients with more certainty than if we were to charge at an hourly rate. Our solicitors David Hurley and Paul Legg are very experienced in dealing with matters of this nature before the courts.

Our fee for such cases would be £695 plus VAT (£834 total price) if your case is heard at Poole Magistrates Court. If your case was heard at an alternative court, we would provide you with confirmation of the fee in advance of the hearing as this would be dependent on the location and complexity of the case. The fee should not exceed £1500 plus VAT (£1800 total price).

Our fee would include:

Obtaining and reviewing the case papers in advance of the hearing
Taking your instructions
Attendance at a single hearing at the Magistrates Court
Advising on the evidence, plea and likely sentence
Providing general advice concerning appeal
Our travel disbursements and any VAT on such disbursements. If your case was heard at Poole Magistrates Court, our disbursement for mileage would be £9.00 plus VAT (£10.80 total disbursement) and our parking fee would be no more than £10.00, dependent on the length of the court attendance. No VAT would be charged on parking fees. If your case was heard at an alternative court, we would provide you with confirmation of our disbursements in advance of the hearing as this would be dependent on the location of the hearing.

The fee would not include the following:

Instructing expert witnesses
Taking statements from potential defence witnesses
Representation at any Special Reasons or Exceptional Hardship hearings

Your case before the court is likely to proceed in the following key stages:

Initial conversation with solicitor to discuss the case and court procedure
Consideration of initial prosecution papers
Attendance at court for the hearing – unfortunately it is not possible to provide an estimate as how long this will take on the day of the hearing as this is dependent on the court listings although we would hope the hearing would be dealt with within half a day
When at court:
- Advice regarding the offence, the strength of the evidence and the likely sentence.
- Take full instructions and advise on plea prior to the hearing.
- Representation during the hearing.
- Consultation after the hearing to advise regarding sentence, any grounds to appeal and next steps

These fees relate to summary only road traffic offences dealt with at a single hearing only. If you wish to request details of our fees for other driving matters or if you have any questions about our fees in general, please do not hesitate to contact us.