Then they get a nasty surprise when the Magistrates say the sentencing guidelines do not allow a reduction on drink driving cases (a ban is an ancillary order not a punishment according to the sentencing guidelines and credit only applies to punishments).
They wonder why they gave up the chance of avoiding a ban when they getting nothing back in return for their guilty plea.
We get around this problem by referring to common law (Judge made law or case precedent) which allow the Courts to treat driving bans as a punishment and also reduce the ban for guilty plea where it allows the motorist to get back into work quicker.
In this way we can ask for both credit for guilty plea (25% to 33% off the ban) on top of the 25% reduction for the drink driving awareness course.
This is a whopping 50% reduction on your driving ban. However you need to instruct a lawyer who knows the caselaw.
Most Courts and solicitors aren’t aware of these legal arguments as they don’t deal exclusively in drink driving cases as we do.
From our testimonials page there are a selection of clients who have taken advantage of the service we offer. One client had his driving ban reduced from 18 months to 9 months, another client similarly had his ban reduced to 9 months from a guideline 17 to 22 months. Another client had his ban reduced from 26 months to 11 months.
For drivers who have previous convictions in the last 10 years it is still worth getting a specialist lawyer to point out the small print of the guidelines which allow them to offer you the drink driving awareness course even if you have been offered this before.
It is unlikely by entering a guilty plea unrepresented or with a high street lawyer you will get the ban reduction you are entitled to.
On the other hand, a solicitor with the right know how can make a big difference to the date you can expect to get your license back.
Spend just 5 to 10 minutes with us answering a few questions about your case and give yourself the possibility of avoiding a criminal record and driving ban.
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