Exceptional hardship is a term used in England and Wales in the context of totting-up driving disqualification. It can allow a court to reduce or avoid the usual minimum driving ban where a driver reaches 12 or more active penalty points, but only if the hardship is genuinely exceptional.
The concept is linked to section 35 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988. It does not mean that losing a licence is inconvenient, expensive or embarrassing. The Sentencing Council says almost every driving ban causes hardship, and that the court needs evidence before accepting that the hardship goes beyond the normal consequences of disqualification.
Totting-Up Disqualification
Totting up applies when a driver accumulates 12 or more relevant penalty points. The Sentencing Council states that the minimum disqualification is normally six months, or longer where previous disqualifications of at least 56 days count within the relevant three-year period.
Points for offences committed more than three years before the current offence are not counted for this purpose. The court first considers the offences and any penalty points, then considers whether the statutory minimum disqualification applies.
What the Court Can Consider
The driver has to prove the exceptional hardship argument on the civil standard of proof. Evidence is usually needed from the driver and, where relevant, from employers, family members, carers, medical professionals or others affected by the ban.
Possible factors include severe consequences for dependants, loss of employment where that loss has wider effects on others, inability to provide care, or serious impact on a business and its employees. The strongest cases usually explain why realistic alternatives, such as public transport, taxis, lift-sharing, changed duties or temporary support, would not avoid the hardship.
What Is Usually Not Enough
Loss of a licence will commonly affect work, family life, income and convenience. That is not automatically exceptional. The Sentencing Council says loss of employment may be an inevitable consequence of a driving ban for many people and is not, by itself, enough to prove exceptional hardship. The court looks at the facts and the wider consequences.
The court must not treat the underlying offence as less serious when deciding exceptional hardship. It also cannot normally rely again on the same circumstances if those circumstances have already been used within the previous three years to reduce or avoid a totting-up ban.
New Drivers
New drivers are a separate issue. GOV.UK says a licence will be revoked if a new driver gets six or more points within two years of passing the test. That revocation is an administrative consequence under the new-driver rules, not the same as an exceptional hardship argument against a 12-point totting-up disqualification.
Practical Examples
Weak Argument
A driver says they dislike buses and need the car for ordinary commuting. That is hardship, but it is unlikely to be exceptional without stronger evidence.
Stronger Argument
A driver is the only realistic transport for a disabled dependant who needs regular medical appointments, and evidence shows no workable alternative. The court may treat the impact on the dependant as more serious than ordinary inconvenience.
Employment Argument
A driver says they will lose their job if banned. The court will usually ask for evidence and will consider whether the work can be changed, whether another role is available, and what the consequences would be for others. The loss of the job itself does not automatically decide the point.
See Also
References
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