Totting up Disqualification – What is it?
Section 35 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act states that if a driver accumulates 12 or more penalty points on their driving licence within any three-year period, the court should disqualify the driver for a minimum period of 6 months.
The Magistrates will look at the dates of each offence that has contributed to the “totting” to determine whether or not it was within a 3-year period. On that basis, delaying a case going to court cannot assist you if you are due to tot.
As an example, if you have 9 points on your licence and you “tot” due to 3 points for speeding being imposed by a court, they will then impose a 6-month disqualification. Following your disqualification, your licence will be wiped clean of the points that led to your “totting”.
have you reached 12 or more penalty points on your driving license you may be facing a disqualification from driving but there’s still hope. At Olliers we specialise in helping clients avoid a ban by putting forward what’s called an exceptional hardship application. We build detailed evidence to show how losing your license would affect not just you but your family your job or others who rely on you. Courts don’t accept hardship easily it really has to be exceptional. Everyone suffers some degree of hardship if they are disqualified from driving and the courts really need to see exceptional hardship. Our experienced team prepares compelling arguments with supporting evidence and we will support you every step of the way. If you’re facing a driving ban speak to us now the sooner you get advice the better your chances of staying on the road.
How can Olliers help avoid a totting disqualification
The specialist team at Olliers have extensive experience in “totting” cases and can discuss the options available to you and representation to deal with a totting scenario by way of a fixed fee.
The main way to avoid a 6-month disqualification is by running what is called an “exceptional hardship argument”.
Exceptional Hardship
An exceptional hardship argument is when we attempt to persuade the court that imposing a 6-month disqualification would cause exceptional hardship. The court is mainly concerned with how innocent third parties would be affected by a driver’s six months ban and not necessarily how it affects the driver himself.
We have an outstanding record of successful exceptional hardship arguments and very rarely run an argument that is rejected by the court meaning that the vast majority of our clients walk away from court with their driving licence intact!
How do we avoid disqualification?
Preparation! Expertise! Persuasion!
The key to a successful exceptional hardship argument is a combination of meticulous preparation, knowledge of the legislation and a persuasive argument at court.
If you choose to instruct Olliers to help you with your case, the first step with all clients is to take a comprehensive and hugely detailed statement of mitigation which usually takes between 60 and 90 minutes. During this process our aim is to find out as much about you as we possibly can as the more we know about you and your personal circumstances the better. On the surface, many previous clients have believed that they do not have much of a case to run an exceptional hardship argument but once the surface has been scratched and every avenue has been explored, they have been amazed at just how far reaching the consequences of their ban may be and this is exactly what the court need to know.
Once this information has been collated, we can give you advice on any supporting evidence that we feel may assist your argument. This may include key character references, bank statements, employer references etc.
It is crucial that the right barrister is selected to successfully run the argument. You need to remember that you are appearing in court because you have committed a number of offences that have led to you accumulating twelve points within a 3-year period. Due to our experience, we work closely with a small pool of select barristers from across the country that we instruct on a day-to-day basis and we will choose a barrister that we feel has the best chance of persuading the court to achieve the desired outcome.
Different Options
Exceptional Hardship should only ever be used as a last resort however any argument can only be used once every 3 years. If you face a second incident of totting within 3 years then it may be more difficult to achieve the result you want.
Many lawyers do not realise the number of different options available to somebody who faces a “totting” disqualification but there is very specific case law that we have used successfully to help us persuade the court to consider different options.
There are usually several options available to somebody in a “totting” position and it is important that you discuss your case with one of our expert motoring lawyers.
Driving Ban Despite Arguing Exceptional Hardship?
Can I Appeal a Driving Ban?
- The court failed to consider key aspects of your hardship argument
- Important evidence was not reviewed
- The disqualification period imposed was excessive
How Do I Appeal?
Exceptional Hardship & Totting Up Frequently Asked Questions
Totting up is the process where penalty points accumulate on your driving licence. Under Section 35 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, if you reach 12 or more penalty points within a three-year period, you face a minimum six-month driving ban. The three-year period runs from offence date to offence date (not conviction date). However, all points remain on your licence for their full duration regardless of whether they count for totting purposes.
An exceptional hardship application is your opportunity to persuade the court not to disqualify you despite having 12 or more penalty points. You must demonstrate that losing your licence would cause hardship that goes beyond what any driver would normally experience from a ban. If the court accepts your argument, they have discretion to either impose no disqualification or reduce the ban below the minimum six months.
These are two distinct legal concepts for different situations. Exceptional hardship applies to totting-up cases (12+ points) and focuses on the consequences of disqualification for you and others. Special reasons apply to offences with mandatory bans (like drink driving) and focus on circumstances connected to the offence itself. You cannot argue exceptional hardship for drink driving; only special reasons can avoid that ban. And you cannot argue special reasons for totting-up; only exceptional hardship applies.
The hardship must be more than the ordinary consequences of a driving ban. Losing your job, inconvenience, or having to use public transport are common consequences that don’t automatically amount to exceptional hardship. Factors that can support exceptional hardship include job loss that would cause others to suffer (employees losing jobs, dependents losing support), caring responsibilities requiring driving, medical needs requiring transport and impact on a business affecting employees and customers. The focus is often on how others would suffer.
The stronger your evidence, the better your chances. You should prepare documentation supporting every claim: a letter from your employer confirming your role requires driving and that you’d face dismissal, evidence of employees or dependents who’d be affected, medical evidence if driving is needed for health reasons, evidence of caring responsibilities, character references, and financial evidence showing impact on dependents. Simply telling the court you’d suffer hardship isn’t enough. You need to prove it.
Yes, and employer evidence is often crucial. A letter should confirm that your job requires driving, you cannot be redeployed, and you would likely face dismissal. It should come from someone senior on company letterhead. The more specific the consequences for others, the stronger the argument, for example, “If he cannot drive, we cannot fulfil customer orders and would need to make his warehouse colleagues redundant.”
Yes, you can argue exceptional hardship on multiple occasions. However, if you’ve successfully argued exceptional hardship within the previous three years, you cannot rely on the same circumstances again. Any new application must be based on different grounds. If you avoided a ban based on your job, you can’t use the same job-related argument again. You’d need to show new circumstances that have arisen since.
If your application fails, the court will impose the standard totting-up disqualification; a minimum of six months for a first totting ban. This increases to 12 months if you’ve had a previous totting ban within three years, or two years for a third. The ban takes effect immediately from the date of sentencing. You should not drive yourself to court if there’s a realistic prospect your application will fail.
No. In almost all cases, your points remain on your licence even after a successful exceptional hardship argument. You simply avoid the disqualification. This means you’ll be driving with 12 or more points, and any further offence attracting points could trigger another totting-up situation. You’d need to argue exceptional hardship again but cannot use the same grounds you relied on before. Driving very carefully after a successful application is essential.
Yes, you can appeal against the sentence to the Crown Court. Appeals must usually be lodged within 21 days of sentencing. The Crown Court will rehear your exceptional hardship application and can substitute its own decision. However, be aware that the Crown Court can also increase the sentence. So, if there were aggravating factors, you could end up with a longer ban. Appeals should only be pursued where there are genuine grounds. You should always take specialist legal advice.
At the hearing, you’ll first deal with the current offence (entering a plea or being sentenced). The court will then confirm your points total and that you’re liable for totting-up disqualification. At this stage, you present the exceptional hardship application. You’ll present your evidence and explain why disqualification would cause exceptional hardship. In many cases the prosecution solicitor will then cross examine you. After hearing your application, the court decides the outcome, usually announced immediately before you leave court.
Contact a solicitor before your next court hearing; ideally as soon as you know you’re at risk. Early preparation makes a significant difference. Start thinking about your circumstances: who depends on you driving? What would happen to your job, your family, your dependents if you couldn’t drive? What evidence can you gather to prove this? The more preparation time you have, the better your chances.
How Olliers Can Help with Exceptional Hardship Appeals
- Review your case and identify strong grounds for appeal
- Prepare and submit your Notice of Appeal
- Represent you at the Crown Court Appeal hearing
- Advise on the likelihood of success and next steps
Need a Specialist Motoring Lawyer?
If you are facing a six-month disqualification due to “totting”, contact our specialist motoring team by completing the form below, emailing info@olliers.com or telephoning 0161 8341515 (Manchester) or 02038836790 (London).
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- 0161 8341515
- info@olliers.com
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