There are a number of offences relating to the state or condition of your car or vehicle with which you can be charged, and it is important to bear in mind that the fact that you were unaware of the defect is no defence. It is your responsibility as a driver to ensure that your vehicle is free from defects

There are four common offences with which you may be charged in relation to vehicle defects. These are:

• using a vehicle which is in a dangerous condition;
• using a vehicle which has faulty brakes;
• Using a vehicle which has faulty lights;
• using a vehicle which has defective tyres.

If the defect which your vehicle is subject to is a minor one then, if stopped by the police you are likely to be offered the opportunity to have your vehicle dealt with in accordance with the Vehicle Defect Rectification Scheme (VDRS). This scheme replaces the verbal warning that police officers used to give when minor matters were noted. The basis of the scheme is that you will be required to right the defect or face prosecution. It is a voluntary scheme under which you will be given a form setting out the defect and requiring you to put that defect right, have the vehicle inspected by an approved garage and to return to the police within 14 days with the defect form endorsed by that garage. This procedure will tend to be used in connection with such minor matters as faulty lights or marginally defective tyres.

If, however, you are using a vehicle on the road which is dangerous, then you are likely to face a more serious charge, namely that of using a vehicle in a dangerous condition. This carries with a fine of up to £2,500 (more if you are the driver of a large goods vehicle or passenger-carrying vehicle), 3 penalty points on your licence and the possibility of a disqualification. Indeed, if you have committed a similar offence in the past three years there is an obligatory disqualification for a period of at least 6 months.

Except in a number of specific circumstances, it is an offence for drivers and adult front seat passengers not to wear a seatbelt in a vehicle in which they are provided and as a driver you must also take responsibility for all passengers under 14 (although not for adult passengers). Adults travelling in the rear of a vehicle must also wear seat-belts where they are fitted and the driver must, in addition, ensure that all children under 14 are appropriately restrined.

The regulations relating to the use of seat belts are, it has to be said, somewhat complicated, especially in the manner in which they relate to the use of child seats and in respect of the regulations applying to older vehicles.

So far as children under 3 years of age are concerned, they must use the correct form of child restraint whether travelling in either the front or the back and in the case of children in rear-ward facing seats travelling in the front, it is illegal to drive without disabling a passenger front airbag. A child under the age of 3 may travel in the back of a taxi or private hire vehicle where no child restraint is available

Children aged over 3 but under 12 or 135cm in height must use the correct form of restraint whether travelling in the front or the back (where seat belts are fitted), except:

• in a taxi or private hire vehicle
• where it is for a short distance for an unexpected necessity
• where there are already two child restraints being used in the rear and a third cannot be fitted to the vehicle

If the child is aged 12 or 13 and is over 135cm in height, then the driver must ensure that adult seat belts are worn (where fitted).

A number of exceptions exist to the duty to wear a seat belt. These include:

• Where you are the driver of, or a passenger in, a vehicle for carrying goods, and you are on a journey not exceeding 50 metres undertaken for the purpose of making a deliver or collection
• you are reversing or, being a suitably qualified driver, are supervising a learner driver who is reversing
• The driver or passenger in a police or fire brigade vehicle
• A disabled person wearing a special disabled person’s belt
• Various exceptions in relation to mini-buses and coaches
• Where you are in an old vehicle not fitted with seat belts. Vehicles made after 1973 should be fitted with front and rear seatbelts. Ones made prior to that date do not have to have seatbelts but if they have been added then they must be worn.

If you have been charged with a seat belt offence then you could face a fine of up to £500, although generally they tend to be dealt with by means of a fixed penalty of £30. The offence does not carry the imposition of penalty points

If you have been charged with a seat belt offence and wish to defend the charge, then contact keepmedriving either by completing the appropriate online information form which you will find in the Getting Help section, by requesting a free call-back using the free, no-obligation call-back form to the right or by phoning us during office hours on 084 4804 4804

Offence of using a mobile phone whilst driving

It is an offence to drive a motor vehicle whilst using a hand-held mobile phone or other similar device and, since February 2007, you can expect to receive 3 penalty points and a fine if you are caught doing so. That fine can range from £60 if you choose to accept a fixed penalty or can be up to £1,000 (£2,500 for drivers of goods vehicles or passenger carrying vehicles) if you choose to go to court.

The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) (Amendment) (No. 4) Regulations 2003 define a device to which this law applies as:

“a device, other than a two-way radio, which performs an interactive communication function by transmitting and receiving data”

and would include items such as hand-held satellite navigation, computers, personal digital assistants equipment and blackberries.

When can I use a mobile phone whilst driving?

You can use a mobile phone when driving provided you do so “hands free” for example using a hands free kit or by having the phone connected to microphones and speakers within the car. Otherwise you would need to park the car and make the phone call whilst stationary.

However, you should note that you can still be prosecuted for using a hands-free mobile phone if the way in which you are using it results in you not being in proper control of your vehicle. The penalties will be the same as for using a hand-held phone.

What do I do if I am charged with a mobile phone offence?

If you have been charged with an offence of this nature you should contact keepmedriving so that we can advise you of the options open to you. It is worth bearing in mind that in addition to the basic mobile phone offence you may also be charged with a more serious charge depending upon how you were driving when using the phone. Thus, if the quality of your driving using a phone falls below the standard that a competent and careful driver would expect, then you may be charged with driving without due care and attention or, in extreme cases, with dangerous driving. These could even apply if you were using a hands-free system and your driving was adversely affected. If injury or damage results from an accident involving use of a mobile phone, then you may find that you also face a civil claim.

The law on this topic is complex and there may be many circumstances where you would be able to put forward either a defence or, at the very least, mitigating circumstances. Thus for example if you were using a mobile phone to make a genuine emergency call and it was unsafe or impractical for you to stop then you might have a defence. Similarly, if the phone was held in a cradle within the car when you used it, it might be possible to argue that you were not using a hand-held device.

Employers and mobile phone offences

If you are an employer then you may also find that you have a liability for those of your staff who drive and use mobile phones. Aside from the more general duty upon you as an employer to effectively manage health and safety at work (which includes in a motor vehicle), there is also the offence contained in the legislation of not causing or permitting any other person to drive a motor vehicle on a road while that other person is using a hand-held mobile telephone or similar device. If you have been charged in respect of this then get in touch with keepmedriving and we will be pleased to advise. Alternatively, we will be happy to advise you on the steps you need to take to protect against such matters in the future.

Whatever your concerns regarding mobile phone related offences, contact keepmedriving either by completing the appropriate online information form which you will find in the Getting Help section, by requesting a free call-back using the free, no-obligation call-back form to the right or by phoning us during office hours on 084 4804 4804

It is an offence for you drive a vehicle whilst you are disqualified or knowingly to permit a disqualified driver to do so. If you have been charged with doing so, you should contact keepmedriving as a matter of urgency.

If convicted you can expect to receive 6 penalty points and a fine of up to a £5,000 and up to 6 months in prison. The court will also have the option to disqualify further if it chooses to do so.

If whilst disqualified you attempt to obtain a new licence this can result in a £1,000 fine and, since that licence will not be valid, you could be charged with driving without a licence.

You should bear in mind that even if you have been charged with this offence it may still be difficult to prove that you were both driving the vehicle and doing so at a time when you were banned. Therefore, it is worth contacting keepmedriving since we may be able to put forward a defence.

Even if you do not have a defence there may be “special circumstances” which we can bring to the attention of the court which would go some way to mitigating any penalty that you incurred. You may, for example, have had to drive the vehicle in an emergency.

Contact keepmedriving either by completing the appropriate online information form which you will find in the Getting Help section, by requesting a free call-back using the free, no-obligation call-back form to the right or by phoning us during office hours on 084 4804 4804