Motoring Law

If your driving licence is your livelihood, the prospect of losing it due to a motoring prosecution can be very stressful. At Watson Woodhouse, we have a team of expert motoring law specialists, here to provide you with the advice and/or representation you need for all allegations of motoring offences in England and Wales.

Our experienced lawyers can give you first-class support across all areas of motoring law including:

• Speeding Offences
• Totting up 12 points
• Appeal of Driving Ban
• Early removal of driving ban
• Mobile phone offences
• Driving whilst disqualified
• Driving without insurance
• Dangerous driving
• Careless driving
• Drink driving

If you need legal advice and representation for a traffic offence which is being heard in the magistrates’ court then, in the majority of cases, we can help you for a fixed fee, plus our travelling expenses to the court where your case is to be heard. Our travelling expenses are charged at 45p per mile for the distance from our office to the court.

In the majority of cases, we will agree to deal with your case at a fixed fee. However, if the case is more complex, it may be that in some cases the costs or fees may be greater than those quoted.  If that is the case, the fee will be agreed upon before you are asked to decide whether to instruct us.

Our fixed costs do not include the following:-

• Obtaining expert reports if required
• Costs of tracing witnesses

Guilty Plea

If you intend to plead guilty then our fee will be determined by how straightforward the arguments are to mitigate the sentence applied. Arguments relating to special circumstances or exceptional hardship are likely to be more complex, as are arguments which involve witnesses.

If the arguments are straightforward, then we will charge £360 (Including VAT at 20%) plus our travelling expenses.

If the arguments are more complex, then we will charge £600(Including VAT at 20%) plus our travelling expenses.

Stages & Timescales

The court case may start in a number of ways. You may receive a summons or postal requisition with a court date. You may be charged by the police directly to court from the police station. For most road traffic offences you will receive a Single Justice Procedure notice which you need to complete. If you are pleading guilty then it may well be that the case can be concluded on the first appearance. If there is to be an exceptional hardship argument or a special reasons argument the Court may adjourn for the hearing to take place, which can typically be for 4 to 8 weeks.

We will meet with you to provide initial advice to you on your options and the procedure, take your instructions and obtain evidence.  Following this we will attend at Court for your guilty plea and prepare and present mitigation for you.

Not Guilty Plea

If you intend to plead not guilty then our charges will be determined by the expected length and complexity of the trial.  The length of the trial will be affected by a number of factors including:-

• The number of witnesses
• Whether you have been charged with more than one offence
• If any expert evidence is needed

For a straightforward not guilty plea where the trial lasts up to an hour and a half, we will charge £600 (Including VAT at 20%) plus our travelling expenses.

If the trial lasts up to half a day, we will charge £900 (Including VAT at 20%) plus our travelling expenses.

If the trial lasts up to a full day, we will charge £1,200 (Including VAT at 20%) plus our travelling expenses.

Stages & Timescales

The court case may start in a number of ways.  You may receive a summons or postal requisition with a court date.  You may be charged by the police directly to court from the police station.  For most road traffic offences you will receive a Single Justice Procedure notice which you need to complete.  If there is to be a trial it will normally be listed two to four months after the first appearance at court or the not guilty plea is indicated by the Single Justice Procedure notice. However, timescales vary from court to court.

We will meet with you to provide initial advice to you on your options and the procedure, take your instructions and obtain evidence.  We will represent you at the first hearing and the court will then set a date for a trial.

Following this we will deal with all case management, which will include meeting to discuss the case, advising you on evidence and plea, and liaising with the Court in relation to what evidence will be presented to ensure the Court lists sufficient time to deal with the matter and fixing an appropriate court date

We will then prepare your case for trial and represent you at Court for the trial itself which will include cross-examining any witnesses and presenting arguments on your behalf.  We will then advise you on the outcome of the trial.

Factors which may increase costs

• Defence witnesses that need to be traced and interviewed
• An unusual aspect of the law
• Need for expert evidence

If you are facing a motoring allegation, contact our road traffic specialists to discuss your personal circumstances.