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0161 383 885512 points on your licence? A 6-month ban is the starting point — not the only outcome.
If you have reached 12 penalty points in three years, the court must disqualify you. There is one recognised way to keep your licence, and it has to be argued properly. Free confidential consultation, callback within 1 working hour.
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Privately funded representation. Legal aid is not available for this type of case.
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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.
The court has to ban you. Unless you give it a reason not to.
Section 35 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 makes disqualification mandatory once you reach 12 points within three years. Magistrates do not have general discretion to be lenient — they need a specific legal reason, and there is essentially one.
One point worth knowing now: it is the date of the offence that counts, not the date of conviction. People are caught out by this constantly, and it can mean you are closer to 12 than you think.
Exceptional hardship: the argument that keeps drivers on the road
The law that makes the ban mandatory also provides the gateway out of it. If the court accepts that disqualification would cause exceptional hardship, it can reduce the ban or decline to impose one at all — leaving you driving with 12 or more points on your licence.
This is not a plea for sympathy and it is not the same as arguing that a ban would be inconvenient. Losing your job, on its own, is rarely enough. The applications that succeed are built on evidence, and on the effect the ban would have on people other than you. That is the part most drivers get wrong when they try it themselves.
What a successful application is built on
- Documentary evidence, not assertion — the court rarely takes your word for it
- The knock-on effect on innocent parties: employees who would lose their jobs, dependants who rely on you for transport, family who would lose their income
- Financial consequences that go beyond inconvenience, such as being unable to meet a mortgage
- Employer witness statements confirming what would actually happen to your role
- Whether a short discretionary disqualification could be sought instead, avoiding the totting threshold altogether
- Whether any of the points on your licence were wrongly imposed and can be challenged or appealed
- Preparing you properly to give evidence from the witness box, which is usually required
There is a further catch that catches people out: you can only rely on the same reasons for an exceptional hardship argument once every three years. If you use your best grounds on a weak application, they are gone. That is the strongest reason not to attempt this without representation.
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Which of these describes your situation?
Totting up affects very different drivers in very different ways. Tell us where you are and we will tell you what your realistic options look like.
Not sure which applies to you? That is exactly what the free consultation is for.
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.
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.
Charge sheet, court date, licence, any documents the police gave you. This is where the procedural issues that matter usually surface.
We agree the fee in writing before any work starts. You know the figure and it does not change.
We open your file, take your full statement and prepare your case for the first hearing.
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★★★★★
I received 21 points and only with their help was I able to keep my licence. As a self-employed builder, losing it would have hit my business, my kids and my mother’s hospital visits.
Shorty · Google review
★★★★★
My case was very complex but they fought long and hard. No ban, and I kept my licence with no penalty points.
Imtiaz A. · Google review
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He went out of his way to ensure I was well informed and updated throughout, clearly explaining every step.
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The solicitor who will argue your case
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.
Knowing evidence, procedure and disclosure inside out is what turns a set of personal circumstances into an argument a bench will accept. Alexander has spent his career in courtrooms where precisely that distinction decides the outcome.
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.
Find out whether you have grounds worth running
The consultation is free and confidential, and it is genuinely useful even if you go no further. Some drivers have a strong application and do not realise it. Others do not, and are better off knowing that early.
- 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 nowRequest 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 drivers lose applications they should have won
Magistrates hear exceptional hardship arguments constantly and have heard every version of ‘I need my car for work’. What separates a successful application is preparation.
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.
Totting up: your questions
Does 12 points always mean a ban?
The starting point is a mandatory 6-month disqualification, and magistrates cannot simply choose to be lenient. But section 35 provides a gateway: if the court is satisfied that disqualification would cause exceptional hardship, it can reduce the ban or decline to impose one, allowing you to continue driving with 12 or more points.
How do I know exactly how many points I have?
You can check your driving record free on the DVLA website, and it is worth doing before you speak to anyone. Remember that points attach by the date of the offence rather than the date of conviction, which is what trips most people up. We can review your record with you during the consultation.
Is losing my job enough to keep my licence?
On its own, usually not. Courts treat losing your job as a foreseeable consequence of accumulating points rather than something exceptional. What tends to succeed is the wider effect — employees who would be laid off, a mortgage that could not be paid, or vulnerable relatives who would lose their transport to medical care.
Can I just do this myself on the day?
You can, and some people do. The risk is that you only get one use of the same reasons every three years. An unprepared application that fails does not just cost you the ban — it burns the grounds you might have needed later. Courts also expect documentary evidence, and turning up without it is the most common reason applications fail.
Will I have to give evidence in court?
In most cases, yes. You will usually be asked to take the witness stand and confirm the details of your hardship, and you may be cross-examined on it. We prepare you thoroughly for this beforehand so it is not the first time you have thought about the questions.
Is there any way to avoid reaching 12 points at all?
Sometimes. If the offence that would take you to 12 allows for a discretionary disqualification, we can invite the court to impose a short ban for that offence instead of points — often between 7 and 28 days. No points are added, so the totting threshold is never reached. It is not available in every case but it is always worth checking.
How much does it cost?
We work on a fixed fee agreed with you in advance, covering our initial advice, the preparation of your evidence and our representation at court. You will know the figure before any work begins and it does not change. Legal aid is not available for this type of application.
How soon should I get in touch?
As early as possible. Building a proper evidence bundle — employer letters, financial records, medical evidence for dependants — takes time, and applications assembled in the week before a hearing tend to show it.
You get one properly prepared attempt at this
Find out whether your grounds are strong enough before you stand up in front of the bench. The consultation costs nothing.
We call you back within 1 working hour.