DIY Guide to Magistrates Court
New downloadable document details what goes on when you make a court appearance for motoring offences
For many people their only brush with the law will come about as result of driving or riding on the roads. The latest Government figures (Census 2001) show that the total number of motoring offences dealt with in 2000 was 10 million, and that just over a fifth of these (2.1 million) resulted in court proceedings.
If you have never been up before the Bench before it is a scary experience, but it is one that most motorists undertake alone. “It’s a simple fact that the majority of defendants charged with motoring offences represent themselves in the Magistrates Court, so we thought we would put together a simple DIY Guide for them ” explains Martin Davies, the solicitor behind the Road Law website.
The guide has been co-written by Martin, a former criminal law specialist himself, and practising criminal law solicitor Andrew Palazzo from McCormacks in London, and tries to cover all the questions that errant motorists may have before they have their day in court.
It starts with looking at possible “get-outs” that all defendants should check, and then goes on to cover pleading guilty by post; adjourning the hearing; preparing for court; appearing in court; and what happens when it is all over. “We can’t turn ordinary people into lawyers, but we can at least tell them what to expect and what sorts of things they should be saying (and, sometimes more importantly, not saying) to the court, so that at least they give themselves every chance of getting a good result on the day ”, says Martin.
The Guide costs £7.50, which can be paid online via BT’s click&buy system. The reader can then access the information both online and also as a Word document download.
| Quick Review |
I've read the guide provided by Road Law and even if you'd not intending to fight a case, it's a refreshingly simple guide to the procedures that must be gone through when attending court. There's good advice about what to do and how to behave when appearing in court as well as tips on the best policy when trying to minimise any bans etc - even how to apologise to the magistrates and make a difference! Court proceedings and the people involved are covered, explaining the role of each person and the dealings you'll have with them. A well written guide that could take much of the worry out of a court appearance. |
Link : www.road-law.co.uk
That is totally disgusting. If it were dangerous driving or racing on a public highway, I would gladly accept that, but 44% loading for automated tickets from a Gatso is pure greed. 44% is not a calculation in relation to risk, which is what we are asking our insurers to evaluate, it is merely an excuse for them to fleece the overburdoned motorist.
Over the 5 year insurance notification window, that equates to over £1500 in extra motoring cost, which in my opinion, is extortion. Bear in mind that these figures relate to a standard car with a value of £12,000 so you can imagine what the figures would be like when compared to a performance car.
No wonder why uninsured drivers are on the increase. This in turn leads to higher premiums, which we pay like the sheep that we are.
tim_s said:
That would be an interesting system but then you'd be persecuting, a genuine, party for being injured in an accident that wasn't their fault. So, yes they receive compensation for the injury but then have to pay higher premiums themselves.
it would make the claiming party weight up if there injury was really worth claiming.
if however, i lost the use of an arm or leg an got £1M then it suddenly is worth claiming even though the premium would rise.
True, but it wouldn't matter because the rise in premium would be insignificant compared to the pay out
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