How Long Does an Offence Remain on Your Licence?

Many motoring offences in the UK are referred to as ‘endorsable offences’. This means that if you commit one of these infringements then your driving license can be endorsed with the appropriate number of penalty points. The type of offence this usually refers to are those that occur on the road – speeding, running a red light, etc, while non-endorsable offences are generally considered to be those that pose less of a threat to other road users, such as parking offences.

If you have been found guilty of committing an endorsable motoring offence, you will have to send off your driving license in order to have the appropriate number of penalty points added onto to it.

How Long Do I Have to Have the Penalty Points Showing on my Licence?

Any penalty points incurred are valid from a 3 year period from the date the conviction was given, but must stay on the licence for an additional twelve months, so a total of 4 years.

I’ve Heard That Points Can End up Being ‘Totted Up’. What Does This Mean?

The number of penalty points given for an offence will depend on the severity and nature of the infringement committed. For minor offences, there is a minimum of 2 points that can be awarded, where other offences carry a range of points that will let a presiding Magistrate choose what they think is an appropriate punishment, once they have looked over all the facts of the case.

Speeding cases usually carry a 3-6 point penalty. If the offender is offered a Fixed Penalty and chooses to accept, they will receive a 3 point penalty as standard. More serious speeding cases that are referred to a Court can land the motorist with 6 points.

As covered in a separate article on this site, Driving without Due Care and Attention can refer to a range of offences carrying between 3-9 points. Once the facts of the case are studied and the severity of the offence becomes clear, the punishment will be decided.

If a motorist is unlucky (or careless!) enough to get 12 points on their license within a 3 year period, the ‘totting up’ procedure will be invoked and following guidelines of the Court, they will have a 6 month driving disqualification imposed upon them. There is room to appeal for a reduction in the ban – there have been cases where motorists have successfully managed to get their disqualification down to 3 months, but on the whole it’s a better idea to avoid it happening in the first place!

If a motorist is disqualified under the ‘totting up’ procedure, the points will be removed from the license, but there will be a reference to the disqualification for 4 years, or 11 years if the offence was related to driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

I’m a New Driver – Does this Apply to me too?

It does apply to new drivers, even more so I’m afraid. If a newly qualified driver gets 6 points on their license within 2 years, it will be withdrawn. The driver will need to wait until the end of the disqualification period and then re-sit and successfully pass the entire driving test again.

Once I’ve Got my License Back, will the Points Have Gone?

Unfortunately, no. Even when a new driver has successfully re-passed the test and is driving again, the penalty points will stay on the license for 3 years after the conviction date, as standard, and are subject to the ‘totting up’ procedure again should the motorist commit any more offences.