In the aftermath of a drink driving conviction, it is normal to be concerned about its impact on your life and career. Committing a drink driving offence in the UK, as well as related offences like careless driving or drug driving, will result in a criminal record, in addition to penalties like a driving disqualification, community order, or in some cases, a prison sentence.
How long that criminal record will remain on DBS checks, impacting your driving licence, employment, travel and other opportunities, depends on the severity of the offence. Many convictions become ‘spent’ after a rehabilitation period. #1 Motoring Solicitors is here to guide you through this difficult situation and clarify what to expect if you are caught driving over the legal alcohol limit.
What is a Spent Conviction?
The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 created a system for these offences that enables convictions to be “spent” after a certain rehabilitation period. Once this period has elapsed, the conviction becomes spent and you are no longer required to disclose it to insurers, employers, or others. The Rehabilitation Offenders Act offers offenders a second chance and is intended to aid rehabilitation.
How Long Until Drink Driving Is “Spent”?
Being convicted of drink driving has a heavier weight on your DVLA record than many other motoring convictions. Road traffic legislation separates different types of offences by codes, which indicate the crime’s severity and how many years until it becomes spent. It’s important to know your motoring conviction code when facing a criminal conviction for drink driving to understand when it becomes spent and you can stop declaring it:
- 11 years from the date of conviction for offences involving driving or attempting to drive above the alcohol limit (DR10, DR20, DR30, DR31, DR61), and causing death by careless driving while above the alcohol limit or failing to provide a breath test or urine or blood sample at the police station (CD40, CD60, CD70).
A DR20 is a driving offence classification indicating driving or attempting to drive while unfit due to alcohol consumption, while a DR10 is where the driver surpasses the legal alcohol limit. A DR20 is assigned when the driver is deemed unfit to operate a vehicle due to alcohol consumption. This could imply that although the alcohol level may not exceed the legal limit, the court has determined the individual is unfit or unsafe to drive because of the alcohol consumed.
The types of driving offences that carry an 11-year rehabilitation period include more severe types of careless driving, like causing death by careless driving and more severe motoring offences related to drink driving.
- 4 years for offences including being in charge of a vehicle while above the alcohol limit or unfit due to alcohol (DR40, DR50, DR60, DR70, DR90). These motoring convictions are typically less severe and include being in charge of a vehicle while driving over the legal limit or failing to provide a specimen for analysis in circumstances other than driving or attempting to drive.
Penalty points for these motor vehicle offences are totted up, and receiving 12 or more penalty points over three years will result in mandatory driving disqualification, where you temporarily or permanently lose your driving licence for at least six months and other penalties. how long the driving ban lasts depends on the severity of the driving offences.
Do I Have to Tell My Employer About My Conviction?
If you have been convicted of drink driving by the court, you may have to disclose your offence to your employer depending on your job role. Spent convictions do not normally appear in basic disclosures, and many roles only require you to disclose unspent convictions. Certain high-responsibility roles, such as roles working with children, medical or government jobs or solicitor roles may use an enhanced DBS check and require you to disclose a drink driving conviction even after it is spent. You typically must also disclose if you have served a prison sentence longer than four years.
Does Drink Driving Show Up on a DBS Check?
Once the rehabilitation period ends, your conviction is considered spent and no longer needs to be disclosed on DBS checks. If you served a prison sentence for a longer period than 48 months, it will never become spent.
Can I Remove My Criminal Record?
Since 2006, police retain conviction records until you’re aged 100, a stark change from prior practices. Under exceptional circumstances, you can apply for the deletion of records through the ACRO deletion unit. There is no formal process for having your criminal record deleted, and while you may be able to submit a deletion application, it does not guarantee your criminal record will be erased.
How #1 Motoring Solicitors Can Help
Our team of expert motoring lawyers offers comprehensive support, from advising on possible defences to mitigating the length of driving bans. We consider special reasons to avoid disqualification, crucial in cases with aggravating factors like accidents or high alcohol readings.
If you are facing a drink driving accusation, our team of expert motoring solicitors offers comprehensive support. We will advise you on possible defences to mitigate the length of any driving bans and consider any special circumstances to help you keep your licence and avoid disqualification. Our goal is to limit the impact on your driving licence, career, and reputation. We are experienced at working with complex cases, such as those with aggravating factors like causing death by careless driving, failing to take an alcohol test or being excessively over the alcohol limit
In many cases, we will recommend that you complete the Drink Driver Rehabilitation Course, which can reduce your disqualification period by 25%.
For those with possible defences, our preparation includes:
- Contacting potential defence witnesses
- Challenging legal technicalities in the prosecution’s case
- Instructing experts to bolster your defence
- Ensuring police followed the correct procedures
- Consulting medical experts relevant to your case
Dealing with a drink driving accusation or conviction on your record is complex, but with advice from expert motoring solicitors, you stand the best chance of mitigating any repercussions. #1 Motoring Solicitors will consider all aspects of your case and offer advice and representation in court to reduce rehabilitation periods and the length of time until your drink driving conviction is considered spent.