disqualified from driving.

B

barcelona

Guest
Hello people,
I would like some advice please.My friend was stopped at a checkpoint for tax and insurance check.He did not have insurance or licence with him.He did not produce it in time so got a summons and needless to say got to court in the afternoon instead of the morning time as expected.When he asked he was told he was banned from driving for a year.
Since then he has been using taxis for work as he is not office based.He went to his solicitor who put him in touch with a barrister who went back to court with him to plead his case.The judge did not give him a second and basically he is looking at a date in May.
He was fully insured at all times except against being a danger to himself.Is there anything he can do as he will have to tell his employers soon.This has been going on since before Christmas.
Thanks for any advice.
 
barcelona said:
He was fully insured at all times except against being a danger to himself.
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While he was insured, you say he "didn't have his insurance with him". Does this mean he failed to have his insurance disc on display (an offence) or just didn't have his Certificate of Insurance with him?

He didn't have his license with him (an offence) and was asked to produce this in a given time. He failed to do so. He was then given a summons to appear in court, which he failed to do.

I really don't see any thing to suggest his sentance should be lessened in all that. He hasn't been unfairly treated (he failed to comply with every request, including the initial offence one of having his license on him [and potentially displaying his insurance disc but academic given the other offences]) so I really don't see any come back.

Just my opinion though. Far from a legal view on the situation.
 
I'm sorry for your friend because he needs his licence to get to work.
however he should have been more responsible at the time when he was first stopped by the Garda. he appears to be very irresponsible first off he was late in producing his Insurance and Licence and then he was late for court. Is it any wonder the Judge did not give a hearing.

I wish him the well in May unfortunately i would not be too optimistic.

Good Luck.

rochs
 
He should be able to put the ban on hold until a full appeal hearing in May. He has 14 days to lodge an appeal.
 
barcelona said:
My friend was stopped at a checkpoint for tax and insurance check.He did not have insurance or licence with him.He did not produce it in time so got a summons and needless to say got to court in the afternoon instead of the morning time as expected.When he asked he was told he was banned from driving for a year.

.
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Your friend has paid the ultimate price for a wrong that was all of his own making. Then he does'nt show up to court on time....baffling. He should take the hit like a man, tough and all that will be. This "getting a barrister" in to try and get someone off on a point of law annoys me. He did the crime now do the time.
 
Moral Ethos said:
Would you like the full rigours of the law applied to you the next time you do 51 km/h in town?
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No, of course you would feel hard done by in that case. But this is different. This guys drives around without insurance and his licence, then does'nt produce them in time, then shows up late for court. A lot of mistakes. You can't have much sympathy for that.
 
Serves him right. Should be put off the road for 5 years.
 
Serves him right. Should be put off the road for 5 years.
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Your friend has paid the ultimate price for a wrong that was all of his own making. Then he does'nt show up to court on time....baffling. He should take the hit like a man, tough and all that will be. This "getting a barrister" in to try and get someone off on a point of law annoys me. He did the crime now do the time.
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You can't have much sympathy for that.
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He was insured and had a licence, he just forgot to produce and was late for court. You reckon that warrants a five year ban? Where did you pull that figure out of?

Some people are absent minded, or just chronically unlucky/terrible at timekeeping and keeping dates. Personally I could have sympathy for that.
 
His "crimes" seem to have been committed after he was stopped; they are not connected with driving offences. Therefore I think his punishment should not be in a form that penalises his ability to drive.
He was stupid but he was insured and licensed, why the ban?
If he was drunk, speeding or uninsured it would be different... but he wasn’t.
 
Failure to produce insurance will always result in a no insurance charge. The guy missed court so he was convicted in absentia. The standard punishment for no insurance is a ban.
 
I have a degee of sympathy, as your pal was insured, but the catalogue of errors he performed means that he'll have to do whatever the legal system tells him to.
 
it certainly does seem harsh but if it was going to have such an impact on his life why didnt he get himself in gear and produce the relevant documents when he was supposed to or show up in court when he was supposed to?

Quite frankly it sounds like he just wasnt bothered, he had every opportunity to resolve the situation and he didnt take those opportunities - i think its difficult to have sympathy for someone who has only themselves to blame.
 
The Judge was probably right to give the punishment he did, after all when the case was called there was no evidence to contradict the garda.

However, if he had turned up, produced his licence and insurance certificate he would have simply got a fine.

I assume that the date in May is an appeal in the Circuit Court where the ban will more than likely be set aside, he'll still have a painful legal bill to remind him to comply in future.

I'm not 100% sure which ones but i know that some punishments remain in place in relation to driving offences pending the Appeal. It may be when an Appeal is brought more than 14 days after the original hearing date
 
Judges take a very poor view of people who fail to show up in court when summonsed. An appeal is only worthwhile if it has a chance of sucess, so not worth paying for a barrister unless there is a reasonable chance of success. I'd guess that the fact that he was "forgetful" on 3 occasions (1. "forgot" license, 2. "forgot" to go to station & 3. "forgot" to turn up in court) works against him - looks like a pattern of behaviour/modus operandi for you friend rather than a once off mistake - to someone who doesnt know him e.g. Judge, it appears that he has utter contempt for the law.
 
csirl said:
Judges take a very poor view of people who fail to show up in court when summonsed. An appeal is only worthwhile if it has a chance of sucess, so not worth paying for a barrister unless there is a reasonable chance of success. I'd guess that the fact that he was "forgetful" on 3 occasions (1. "forgot" license, 2. "forgot" to go to station & 3. "forgot" to turn up in court) works against him - looks like a pattern of behaviour/modus operandi for you friend rather than a once off mistake - to someone who doesnt know him e.g. Judge, it appears that he has utter contempt for the law.
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That is relevant in certain circumstances but when it comes ot the Appeal, if the garda sees the documentation, then he will probably consent to it. He appears to be innocent of the charges so the conviction should be set aside.

There should be something done though to take into account the waste of the courts and garda's time. Heavier fine or something.
 
Purple said:
His "crimes" seem to have been committed after he was stopped; they are not connected with driving offences. Therefore I think his punishment should not be in a form that penalises his ability to drive.
He was stupid but he was insured and licensed, why the ban?
If he was drunk, speeding or uninsured it would be different... but he wasn’t.
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I don't think he even committed a crime... (except not having his license with him , which is a very minor offense) ... he just didn't put on a defense to what the guard accused him of , either at the station or the court...

he should be trying to get the ban suspended until an appeal (which he will win if represented, and doesn't get a cranky judge)....
 
i would not agree to this, you must at all times display your tax, insurance and NCT cert for certain cars. If you do not have the above on display it is against the law. Also the guy had 10 days to produce his insurance and failed to do so, does this mean he really wasnt insured because i feel 10 days is enough time to drive down to the local Gardai station and show it!!! No judge should give cases like this even a second as the whole country would be claiming that they "really were insured" at the time. Sorry but the law is the law!!!
 
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