A company director has failed in his bid to avoid driving disqualification, having been caught speeding when he already had 15 points on his licence.
Jeffrey Razaq, 58, of Gunton Cliff, Lowestoft appeared before Norwich Magistrates' Court for an exceptional hardship hearing.
Ordinarily a driver who accumulates 12 penalty points on their licence within a 3 year period faces a six month disqualification under the so-called totting up rule. If the court accepts that exceptional hardship would occur as the result of the disqualification, it has to power to disqualify for a shorter period of time or to not disqualify at all.
Magistrates heard that Razaq had been clocked speeding on three separate occasions in the past 12 months.
Last September he was clocked at 66 mph in a 50 mph zone on the M23; in December he was caught at 35 mph in a 30 mph zone at Fritton; and in January he was caught at 51 mph in a 40 mph zone on the A12 in Suffolk.
Razaq already had 15 points on his licence as a result of two earlier speeding offences. Despite his poor driving record, Razaq had been allowed to keep his licence after an earlier successful claim of exceptional hardship.
On this occasion, however, the businessman's luck had ran out.
"The business depends on my bringing deals through the door," Razaq told the court.
He said he would lose his job and his home were he to lose his licence. He also warned that his business would have to dismiss employees if he was banned from the roads.
"I haven't had any holiday and if I was to be banned for weeks rather than months I could take some holiday, which could help my situation rather than lose my job," he told the court.
"I am sorry for my actions."
Razaq was fined £523 for the offences. He was also ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £52.
He was banned from driving for 28 days for each offence, to run concurrently.
Of course if Razaq had been genuinely concerned about his job, home and employees he wouldn't have exceeded the speed limit for the umpteenth time.
Having given him the benefit of the doubt previously, it is reassuring that the court stood firm on this occasion.
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