Drink Driving Solicitors | Free Consultation | The Motoring Lawyers
The Motoring Lawyers

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0161 383 8855
Drink driving defence

Charged with drink driving? You may have more options than you think.

Specialist motoring solicitors defending drink driving cases across England and Wales. A free, confidential review of your case — and a call back within 1 working hour.

Over 20 years in motoring lawFixed fees agreed upfrontFree confidential consultationNationwide

We call you back within 1 working hour.

Privately funded representation. Legal aid is not available for this type of case.

Request your free consultation

Tell us where you’re up to and we’ll call you back.


Confidential and free of charge. No obligation to instruct us. We call you back within 1 working hour — Monday to Friday.

Regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority Rated five stars on Google Reviews Member of The Law Society of England and Wales
What’s actually at stake

A conviction does not end at the courtroom door

A drink driving conviction carries a mandatory disqualification. For most people the ban is not the worst part — it is what the ban takes with it.

Insurers can load your premium for years afterwards. Employers who require a driving licence rarely wait out a 12-month ban. And the people who depend on you for the school run, the hospital appointment or the daily commute lose that too.

Minimum 12-month banMandatory on conviction, and longer for higher readings or repeat offences
Unlimited fineThere is no upper cap set by statute
Up to 6 months in prisonAvailable to the court in the most serious cases
Before you plead guilty

Being over the limit does not automatically mean a conviction

Most people who call us have already decided they are guilty. Often they are wrong — not about the reading, but about whether the prosecution can prove its case.

A drink driving prosecution depends on the police having followed a strict statutory procedure from the roadside through to the police station. Those requirements exist precisely because the evidence is otherwise impossible to challenge. Where the procedure has not been followed, the reading may not be admissible at all. We have acted in cases that were discontinued by the prosecution before they reached trial.

What we examine in every case

  • Whether the officer had lawful reasonable cause to require a test in the first place
  • Whether the roadside breath procedure was correctly administered, and whether the officer was in full uniform
  • Compliance with the MGDD procedure at the police station, and the quality of the instructions you were given
  • Calibration, servicing and reliability of the evidential breath testing device
  • Continuity, handling and preservation of any blood or urine specimen
  • Whether a medical condition or other reasonable excuse explains a failure to provide
  • Whether post-driving consumption or the statutory ‘drunk in charge’ defence is available to you

Not every case has a defence, and we will tell you plainly when it does not. Where a guilty plea is the right course, early specialist mitigation can still make a material difference to the length of the disqualification and the sentence imposed.

We call you back within 1 working hour.

What happens next

From your first call to your court date

No call centres, no scripts. You speak to a motoring solicitor about your own case.

We call you back within 1 working hour.

1
Free initial consultation

Call us or send your details. We review what has happened, explain where you stand and set out your realistic options. No charge and no obligation.

2
We check your paperwork

Charge sheet, court date, licence, any documents the police gave you. This is where the procedural issues that matter usually surface.

3
Fixed fee agreed and invoiced

We agree the fee in writing before any work starts. You know the figure and it does not change.

4
File opened and prepared for your first hearing

We open your file, take your full statement and prepare your case for the first hearing.

What it costs

Our fees, stated plainly

£1,500+ VAT — starting point

Drink driving defence starts at £1,500 + VAT. That is the starting point, not a quote. Once we have reviewed your case we agree a fixed fee with you in advance, and that figure does not move. No hourly rates, no billing by the letter, no invoice that grows as the case goes on.

What moves the fee

  • Whether you are pleading guilty with mitigation, or contesting the charge at trial
  • The complexity of the procedural issues in your case
  • Whether independent expert evidence on the specimen or device is required

We are a privately funded firm and do not offer legal aid. That is a deliberate choice: it lets us give every case the time a specialist defence needs.

We call you back within 1 working hour.

What clients say

Rated 5.0 on Google

★★★★★

Incredibly professional and very helpful in answering all my questions.

Umar N. · Google review

★★★★★

Super supportive throughout the whole process. I can’t thank these guys enough.

George S. · Google review

★★★★★

Helped me at every step of the process. Can not recommend enough.

Brad A. · Google review

The people acting for you

The solicitor reviewing your case

Alexander, Director and Higher Court Advocate at The Motoring Lawyers

Alexander

Director · Solicitor · Higher Court Advocate

  • Director of the firm
  • Qualified Solicitor
  • Higher Court Advocate
  • 20+ years in motoring law
  • Crown Court jury trial advocate

Alexander is a Director of the firm, a qualified Solicitor and Higher Court Advocate, and has specialised in motoring law for over 20 years. For much of that time he was an advocate in the Crown Court, acting for clients in jury trials, and he has acted in some of the most serious road traffic cases there are. That work built a detailed knowledge of evidence, statute and case law — and, critically in this area, of disclosure and procedure, and how to use them to a client’s advantage in court.

Alexander has significant experience across criminal road traffic cases and a particular depth of knowledge in matters involving drink and drugs. He has built a reputation for the technical expertise these cases turn on, using the law and the procedure behind the evidence to the benefit of his clients.

He also understands the value of being approachable. He takes the time to guide clients through proceedings and explain each step, so that the process itself stops being one more thing to worry about.

Alexander is not the only solicitor here. Our motoring team handles cases across England and Wales, so your matter is never waiting on one person’s diary. Whoever acts for you, road traffic law is their specialism.

Free initial consultation

Find out where you stand, before you decide anything

The consultation is free and confidential. You are not committing to instruct us by making the call — plenty of people ring, get a clear answer and take it from there.

  • Free, confidential and with no obligation to instruct us
  • You speak to a motoring solicitor, not a call handler
  • An honest view of your options — including when there isn’t one
  • A fixed fee agreed before any work begins

We call you back within 1 working hour.

Or call 0161 383 8855 now

Request your free consultation


Confidential and free of charge. No obligation to instruct us. We call you back within 1 working hour — Monday to Friday.

Why a specialist

Why this is not a job for a general practice firm

Drink driving cases are won and lost on procedural detail that a general criminal practitioner sees a few times a year. We see it every week.

Motoring law is all we do

Not one department among twelve. The procedural detail these cases turn on is our day job, not an occasional file.

Specialist advocates

The solicitor who reviews your case is the one who knows how these arguments are run in the magistrates’ court.

You get a real person

Direct contact with the solicitor handling your matter. No call centre, no ticket number.

Fixed fee, agreed upfront

You know the cost before any work starts. No hourly billing and no invoice that grows.

Common questions

Drink driving: your questions

Am I definitely going to lose my licence?

On conviction for driving over the prescribed limit, disqualification is mandatory — the court has no discretion to avoid it. That is why the question worth asking first is not how long the ban will be, but whether the prosecution can prove the offence at all. That depends on the evidence and on whether the correct procedure was followed.

Is it worth paying if I was over the limit?

Often, yes — and sometimes no. A reading over the limit is not the same thing as an admissible, provable case. Where the procedure was followed correctly and the evidence is sound, we will tell you, and the value we add is in the mitigation and the length of the ban rather than the outcome. You will get that assessment for free before you spend anything.

What will it cost and can the price change?

Fees start at £1,500 + VAT. After the free review we agree a fixed fee with you in writing, and that figure is what you pay. It does not change unless the scope of the work changes and you agree to it first.

How quickly will you get back to me?

Within 1 working hour, Monday to Friday. If you call outside those hours, leave your details on the form and you will hear from us at the start of the next working day.

Do I have to attend court?

In most drink driving cases, yes — the defendant is required to attend. We prepare you thoroughly for what will happen on the day and we speak on your behalf in front of the bench.

I failed to provide a specimen. Is that worse?

Not necessarily. Failing to provide is a separate offence, and it is only made out if you had no reasonable excuse. Medical conditions affecting your breathing, a panic attack or anxiety, inadequate instructions from the officer, or failures in the MGDD procedure can all amount to a reasonable excuse. It is one of the more defensible charges in this area.

Do you offer legal aid?

No. We are a privately funded specialist firm and legal aid is not available for this work. Our fixed-fee structure exists so you know exactly what you are committing to before you commit to anything.

Do you cover my area?

We represent clients in magistrates’ courts across England and Wales. Our head office is in Chorley, but where your case is being heard does not restrict who can act for you.

You have a limited window to get advice that changes the outcome

The earlier a specialist sees the evidence, the more can be done with it. The consultation costs nothing.

We call you back within 1 working hour.

The Motoring Lawyers

Head office

Office 6, First Floor, St Thomas House, 18 St Thomas Road, Chorley PR7 1HR

Nationwide

We represent clients in magistrates’ courts across England and Wales.