White Dalton’s specialist motoring solicitor Andrew Prendergast guides readers through their legal trials and troubles…
Question:
I have recently turned 78 years old and have ridden bikes all my life and even raced at the TT back in the day, so I know one end of a bike from the other. About two weeks ago, I was riding in lane one of a dual carriageway on my Triumph Scrambler 400 X when I spotted road cones to my right and a broken-down lorry ahead. As I needed to avoid the lorry stuck in lane one, I manoeuvred through the cones into lane two to pass by it. At that point I saw a police lady waving at me to stop. I pulled up in front of the lorry whereupon the police lady asked what I thought I was doing. She said there was a sign that she had put out telling motorists that lane one was shut. I told her there was no such sign, but she was adamant. Anyway, after she filled out her paperwork, she let me get back on my bike and ride off. As I knew she was wrong, I decided to circle back round to check for this alleged sign. However, by the time I got back round (about 5 or 10 minutes later) I saw her carrying her sign back up the road towards her car as the lorry had presumably moved off. I will happily go to Court and swear that sign was not there, and I have done nothing wrong. However, I have now received a letter from the police. It gives me the option of accepting a driver improvement course; or a fixed penalty offer of 3 points and £100 fine; or to go to court for the alleged offence of driving without due care and attention. What should I do? I want to defend it, but I also need my licence to take my older brother to medical appointments. I also need to renew my licence soon due to my age and do not want anything to affect that. This is causing me a lot of sleepless nights.
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Answer:
In England and Wales, you have an absolute right to defend any criminal case against you. Therefore, on the information you have provided, you could choose to defend the case on the basis that you say you have not driven without due care and attention. You are adamant that there was no sign in position closing the left-hand lane of the dual carriageway and once you spotted the stationary lorry you moved through the road cones into the right-hand lane. If the Court accepts your evidence, you should be found not guilty.
However, if you were to go to Trial and the police officer gives evidence that she had closed the lane for the lorry and had put out a sign and cones etc. and you did not see them in time or at all, and the Court accepted her evidence, you will be found guilty of driving without due care and attention. A person pleading guilty or being found guilty of an offence in this category could be subject to a penalty points endorsement of 3 to 9 points and a fine. In addition, you would normally have to pay Court costs. Further, for offences where a fine forms part of the punishment, you would usually be required by the Court to pay a Victim’s Surcharge in the region of £85.00.
Due to the nature of the offence alleged you could be disqualified instead of getting penalty points. If you were disqualified, the length of time would be down to the Court.
I again stress it is your absolute right to defend this allegation. However, in light of your main objectives i.e. to be able to drive and look after your brother; to remain independent; and have no conviction or points to declare when you have to renew your licence, I strongly advise you should consider accepting the driver improvement course. Whilst I understand it may not “sit well” with you, it will bring this matter to a conclusion. Thereafter, you can move forward with your life without the ongoing worry and stress. I would just ask you to ponder why the police officer was carrying her sign back up the road. Could you have missed it? We all make mistakes. Just a thought.
