Driving disqualification

Penalty points (totting up) disqualification — the court must disqualify a person for a minimum of 6 months if they accrue 12 or more points within a 3-year period, unless there are grounds for mitigating the normal consequences of the conviction. The ground most commonly argued is exceptional hardship.

Discretionary disqualification — the court has a discretion to disqualify for any motoring offence that carries points. It can often be persuaded to impose penalty points instead, taking into account the circumstances of the offence and the offender.

Obligatory disqualification — for certain offences the court must disqualify. The only ways to avoid it are a defence to the offence, or special reasons not to disqualify.

What is a special reason?

A special reason not to endorse your licence or disqualify you is a reason that is not a defence, is a mitigating or extenuating factor, is directly related to the commission of the offence, and is a factor the court ought properly to take into consideration when sentencing.

Revocation is not the same as disqualification

Revocation is when the DVLA takes away your driving licence. When your licence is revoked you do not automatically have the right to reapply: the DVLA will only return it if you satisfy specified conditions. At the end of a disqualification, by contrast, you are entitled to apply for your licence back unless there are medical reasons why it should not be returned.

A licence may be revoked if you are a new driver who obtains 6 or more points within 2 years of passing your test — in which case you must take your test again — or if you are assessed as medically unfit to drive. New drivers can sometimes avoid revocation by persuading the court to impose fewer than 6 points where the offence carries variable points, or a short discretionary ban instead. If assessed as medically unfit, revocation can be challenged with medical evidence — first to the DVLA, then on appeal to the Magistrates’ Court. See our DVLA advice & appeals service.