Applications for Early Removal of Driving Disqualification

Judging by the number of applications the court receives, it is a little known fact that a disqualified driver can, under certain circumstances, apply to the court for the early removal of their disqualification.

During my time on the Bench, which is just shy of a decade now, I have heard only one of these applications. My memory of it has been jogged by a recent case at King's Lynn Magistrates' Court, where colleagues recently decided to reduce the disqualification of a man initially disqualified for a period of 56 months.

In today's article I give a quick overview of the relevant legislation, which is section 42 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988.

Section 42(1) of the Act permits any disqualified driver to apply to the court which made the disqualification, be that the Magistrates' or Crown Court, to have the disqualification removed.

However, in accordance with section 42(3), an application can only be made after the following periods of time from when the disqualification was imposed:

• after two years if the disqualification was for less than four years, disregarding any extension period;
• after half the disqualification period in the case of a disqualification of more than four years but less than ten years, disregarding any extension period;
• after five years in all other cases.

Any time that the disqualification was suspended, e.g. pending an appeal at the Crown Court, is not counted towards these time periods.

Section 42(2) allows the court on application to either remove the disqualification from any date it may order, or refuse the application. In making its decision the court must have proper regard to:

• the character of the disqualified driver and their conduct subsequent to disqualification;
• the nature of the offence;
• any other circumstances of the offence.

In the event that the court refuses an application, in accordance with section 42(4) it shall not consider a further application for a period of at least three months.

When considering an application the court will pay particular attention to the conduct of the disqualified driver and any new circumstances that have arisen since then.

If the disqualified driver has kept out of trouble and has a good reason for needing their licence back early - say a dependent has become seriously ill, or they have the offer of employment in an isolated location with no public transport - then there's a fair chance the court will reduce the disqualification period.

It should be noted, however, that the decision is entirely at the discretion of the court. If it decides to refuse the application, then that's that for at least the next three months.