Driver Convicted of Being  Drunk in Charge of Vehicle Retains his Vocational Licence with a Formal Warning at Driver Conduct Hearing

Barrister, Helen Newbold, represented this driver who was appearing before the traffic commissioner having been convicted of being in charge of a motor vehicle while his alcohol level was over the legal limit.

After his conviction in the magistrates’ court of excess alcohol whilst in the driver’s seat of his private car there was a very real risk that this driver could face a period of disqualification or at the very least a  substantial suspension of his professional entitlement. Coming into the busiest time of the year any substantial sanction could have been disastrous for both the driver and his employer.

After taking the driver carefully through the circumstances of the case and setting out all mitigating factors Helen was able to persuade the traffic commissioner that a formal warning would be sufficient to mark this drivers card and prevent any reoffending.