Kaufmanlegal - Alcohol Related Page

-	Alcohol related
-	Dangerous careless driving
-	Disqualified Driving
-	Driving without Insurance
-	Seatbelts
-	Speeding
-	Mobile phone
-	Traffic lights
-	Traffic road sign violation
-	Tachograph
-	Defective vehicle
-	Penalties
-	Parking/Vehicle taxation
-	Totting up and Exceptional Hardship
-	Failing to Furnish Information

“Kaufman & Co. helped both myself and my clients when it seemed that our licences were at risk. It was their assured presence at court that gave me confidence when I had to appear before the Magistrates since which time I have referred my own clients to them”.

Tony Rollins
Managing Director




	Whenever a defendant is convicted of one of the above offences his licence is at risk. Whilst the court retains a discretion as to disqualification in cases of being Drunk in Charge of a Motor Vehicle they have to disqualify for a minimum period of twelve months unless a Special Reason for not doing so can be established. In cases where you have an alcohol related driving conviction during the past ten years the mandatory period of disqualification is three years! The limits are as follows: 35 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath; 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood; 107 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of urine. The police have powers including entry to your home in limited circumstances and they have to comply with a complicated set of rules to acquire the evidence they need to prove that you were over the limit. The usual scenario is that they stop the vehicle, notice things about the driver that indicate consumption of alcohol (that the driver’s breath smells of intoxicants; they are unsteady on their feet; their eyes are glazed; and their speech is slurred) before requiring a Roadside Test. If that test is failed they arrest you and take you to the station for an “evidential test” on a machine (usually The Lion Intoxilyzer 6000 UK). Where your reading in breath is higher than 35 but lower than 50 they ought to give you the option of a blood or urine test (the police can choose which unless you indicate a medical reason for refusing blood). Otherwise the only time the question of blood or urine arises is where the machine is malfunctioning or not available. Apart from a ban and a fine a high reading or repeat offending could lead to imprisonment! You may have a Defence even if you are over the limit. The alcohol may have been consumed after the driving had finished for example (the so-called “Hip-flask Defence”). Otherwise you may be able to avoid a ban if you can establish “a Special Reason”. This can never arise out of your personal circumstances but has to: 1) arise out of the circumstances of the offence itself; 2) be a mitigating factor 3) be something the Court ought to take into account; and 4) Not amount to a Defence. (RvWickens). An example of a Special Reason is where your drink has been “spiked” but there are many others. Another is “shortness of distance driven”. A ban can be reduced by 25% if you opt to go on a specified course and complete it within the required timescale. Usually there is a fee for the course. Drunk in Charge Although this offence has a discretionary disqualification there may be a defence to the charge arising out of there being “no likelihood “of you having driven before the alcohol in you had fallen below the limit. In such a case the burden of proof is upon the defendant and only “on the balance of probabilities”. Medical evidence showing when that limit was likely to have been achieved is essential. Failing To Provide A Specimen Using one of these machines requires a continuous flow of breath without interruption for about seven seconds. If you cough as a result of a chest infection or asthma you will fail the test and then be charged with Failure to Provide a Specimen! When you have an illness you should always notify the Custody Officer at the time he is completing the Custody Record upon admission to the station. However if you didn’t know you had an illness you may still have a defence as you may be able to show that you had a reasonable excuse for not providing the specimen. You cannot delay the procedure by insisting that you want to speak to your legal advisor before you comply with the request for a sample of breath. That itself may be taken to be a refusal. The specially trained officer has to comply with a set of procedures which if infringed could lead to your acquittal. Again there is an automatic ban if you are convicted under this Section.

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