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A ban from driving can sometimes mean a permanent ban, but depending on the severity of your crime or crimes a disqualification can range from a one year ban to ten years off the road.

There is also a penalty called a Short Period Disqualification (SPD ) and this is where someone is banned from driving for less than 56 days, and their license is held by the court for this period, but not surrendered. This duration of ban is given as a penalty for the less severe offences, and you can begin driving again once it has expired without having to repeat your test.

When a full license disqualification has been enforced, you are able to apply for a license again, and there are specific forms for this both at the post office and online. At this point you will receive a provisional licence and then you will be requires to take the theory, hazard and practical tests.

Even once you are back to having a full licence, the endorsements (points) which you were given will still remain on your license, unless a magistrate advises you otherwise and you are requested in court to make your case for removal.

In some cases of extended bans, you may not be banned for the whole period, as the court sometimes allow a driver to serve half their disqualification if they have taken steps to ensure that after the disqualification period they can be a safer driver, such as a drink driving rehabilitation course. A ban may also be reduced if the court take into account the motorists personal circumstances and deem that the impact of the ban would be detrimental to the motorists family life or job.

If a ban more than 2 years has been given, then often you can apply to reinstate your licence after half the disqualification has elapsed. However if you have been found guilty of other offences, whether motoring or of a different nature, during your disqualification period then your application will be instantly dismissed.

If you have committed a drink driving offence you will need to get help and advice from a specialist driving offence lawyer.

The UK has a large quantity of road laws; we have put together a short list of the most frequent traffic offences, shedding light on the details and penalties you can expect for some of the more common driving offences. If you’re a driver on the UKs roads then the likelihood is you have at some point fell on the incorrect side of the law with one of them. Astonishingly most of the UKs drivers are not actually aware of what they are being charged with and why when they are stopped.

Excessive Speed: The actual offence here is defined as ‘Driving on a road exceeding the prescribed speed limit’. This offence carries a 60 fine and three points on your driving licence. The maximum penalty here is 1000 and 6 points on your licence depending on the speed you were doing. If you are caught driving at more than 30 miles above the set limit you can expect a ban.

If you are offered a fixed penalty then you are probably best off in the long run to take this option as the imposed fine is likely to be less than what any court would impose. However if you do decide to contest a speeding fine, then possible reasons include that you were simply not speeding or it wasn’t you driving, or that you were driving an exempt vehicle due to emergency.

Failing to stop after an accident: The offence here is being a driver of a mechanically propelled vehicle in the presence of which a road traffic accident occurred where personal injury or damage was caused to another person and or vehicle. Further to this, if you also fail to stop after injuring an animal not in the vehicle or properties on or near the road and fail to stop then you break the above law. Penalties, understandably for these offences can be severe, with 6 months in prison and or a fine not exceeding 5000 likely. However If you can satisfy the Court that you were unaware that an accident had occurred this may be a defence to the charge.

Speeding on a Motorway: The offence here again is a simple one, exceeding the national speed limit on a Motorway. And if you do break this law by travelling over the 100mph mark then chances are you will be immediately banned AND fined. The maximum penalty for this offence is a fine not exceeding 2500 and an endorsement of 3-6 points.

If you have been given a Drink Driving Ban, then visit Freeman Keep On Driving expert Driving Solicitors.