Conditional Offers and Alternatives to Points

If you are unlucky enough to find yourself charged with a motoring offence you might end up with a fine, penalty points or disqualification, which could be issued in the form of 'on-the-spot' fines or fixed penalty notices.

Conditional Offers

There may be situations where you are offered a conditional offer notice. Conditional offer notices work a very similar way to fixed penalty notices, in that they allow motorists to take the option of accepting a fixed penalty rather than taking the matter to court.

It is Important to Note the Following:

• You must produce your license within 28 days
• If the conditions on the notice are not met in the time limit, the fixed penalty will not be registered as a fine, but a summons can then be issued.
• The procedure for dealing with these notices is different in England and Wales than it is in Scotland, so make sure you read what the information says on the notice.

What do I do to Accept the Conditional Offer?

If you want to accept the offer you must send in your payment together with your driving license to the magistrate's court. If you have a photo card license you must send in both parts - the photo card and paper part of the license. If you have lost your driving licence then you need to obtain a new one from the DVLA, but by law you must still respond to the offer within 28 days. You should write to the Safety Camera Partnership to request that suspension of the process is considered due to these circumstances.

Driving Awareness Courses

In many areas of the UK, an alternative to penalty points and paying fines comes in the shape of driver awareness courses.

Across the country there are special courses or workshops designed to instruct drivers and raise their awareness of their actions on the road. Concentrating on education rather than punishment, the courses are designed to improve driving skills, attitude and behaviour for the safety of motorists and other road-users. They vary from area to area, but on the whole they tend to be similar. If you are eligible to attend one you will be informed via letter from the issuing authority and recent figures show that of those offered these alternatives, almost 100% are taking this option. You will have to pay for the course, which will usually be priced at a little more than the fine incurred originally, but any penalty points related to the offence will not be added to your license.

Some Examples of the Courses Offered

• Speed Awareness Workshop - Urban Roads: This workshop is available to drivers who have been caught doing between 35-39mph in a 30mph zone and 46-50mph in a 40mph zone. Classroom based the course lasts two and a half hours and costs £74 which is paid instead of the £60 fine and three penalty points.
• Speed Awareness Workshop - Faster Roads: This is for driver's detected doing between 57-61mph in a 50mph zone, between 68-72mph in a 60mph and between 79-83mph in a 70mph. The course is classroom based, lasts two and a half hours and costs £74, which is paid instead of the £60 fine and three penalty points.
• Speed Awareness Course: This is for those drivers who are outside the speed awareness threshold, and for whom the usual course of action is a court summons. If they are less than 10mph over the threshold they may be invited to attend this course. It comprises of three hours in the classroom and two on the road and costs £94. The driver will still get a £60 fine and 3 penalty points but it means that they will not have to appear in court.
• Red Light Camera Course: For drivers who have been caught going through a red light, this half-day theory based course runs for 3.5 hours. Those eligible will be contacted by the police once they have had their Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) and by agreeing to attend the course they agree to participate and successfully complete the course which includes:

Attendees to the course must:

• Attend all of the theory sessions
• Complete all course paperwork
• Make a positive contribution to the course
• Demonstrate a willingness to improve their driving

The course is provided by a team of specially trained Department for Transport Approved Driving Instructors, costs £60.00, and must be paid in full 3 weeks prior to attending. It can be taken as an alternative to penalty points.

Several authorities also operate workshops designed for people who have been caught out using their mobile phone while driving. The penalty for using a mobile phone while driving is three penalty points on your license, a fine of £60 - £1000 for private car drivers. Drivers can opt to take the workshop as an alternative to the both fine and the points.