Drivers with 40+ points still allowed on the road

According to a Freedom of Information request to the DVLA by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) there are three drivers with more than 40 points on their licence that are still allowed on the road.

The enquiry also found out that there are 13 people in Britain who currently have 28 or more points on their driving licence, the worst of those amassing 50 points. The enquiry also shown that there has been a 9% rise on the number of drivers who have 12 or more points on their licence in just seven months.

While the DVLA does not hold details as to whether all of those individuals were still on the road, it did state that individual courts have the powers to choose not to disqualify a driver.

In its reply to the IAM’s request, the DVLA said: “In a small percentage of cases where the driver has accumulated 12 or more penalty points, the agency understands that a court can exercise its discretion and not disqualify the driver. “In the majority of these cases, magistrates may have decided to allow drivers to retain their entitlement to drive where it is considered that disqualification would cause exceptional hardship,” it added.

Below is the list of locations of the drivers who have 28 or more points on their licence

Points             Location

51                    Oxford

42                    Liverpool

42                    Basildon

39                    Wigan

38                    Burnley

33                    Northampton

33                    SW London

30                    Sheffield

30                    Southend-on-Sea

30                    Slough

30                    Cambridge

29                    Peterborough

28                    Stevenage

IAM had a look into the top five offenders as to why they were still allowed on the road with over 12 points and revealed the following:

• 51 points holder (Oxford): provisional licence holder, three speeding offences in 30mph zone, seven offences of not providing driver details. Not disqualified.
• 42 points holder (Liverpool): currently seven counts on record, including two of speeding in 30mph areas and five of not reporting driver of vehicle. Not disqualified.
• 42 points holder (Basildon): seven offences, all of which were for failing to report driver details. Previously held points for speeding including one at 109mph. Not disqualified from driving as magistrates accepted mitigating circumstances including ‘extreme hardship’ through loss of income. Not disqualified.
• 39 points holder (Wigan): 13 counts of exceeding the speed limit for a goods vehicle. Not known if this driver has been disqualified
• 38 points holder (Burnley): 10 counts of speeding in 30mph areas. Not disqualified.