Are You Sure That You Are Legally Entitled to Drive Your Car?

Did you hear about that person who was charged recently by the police because they were driving without a licence? You may have thought this was very careless or even presumptuous of them and wondered how they could ever get themselves into this position. However, maybe you should think a bit more about this situation and wonder whether you could find yourself in a similar situation. How could this be possible in this day and age?

Address Issues

When was the last time that you moved home? Now, have a look at the expiry date on your licence. If it's run out fairly recently and you did not receive a renewal notice through the mail, it could be because you haven't notified the licensing authority of a change of address. Remember, these licences will only last for a particular number of years and even though a reminder will be sent out, it's still up to you to make sure everything is renewed.

Missed Payments

If you've had a previous run-in with the law, you might have agreed to make specific payments in order to satisfy a traffic infringement debt. Have you been careful to ensure that enough money was in your bank account to sustain those payments at all times? If not and one or two have been missed, then this could automatically trigger a suspension of your licence. Once again, the onus is on you to ensure that these payments are up-to-date and that you don't risk a suspension.

Points Build up

There are a number of situations where you may have infringed some traffic laws and been adjudged a fine. Once again, if you haven't kept your mailing address up-to-date then you may not have received notice through the post and these fines may have continued unpaid. In some circumstances, authorities can issue additional penalties up to and including a disqualification from driving. If you always tend to "push the envelope" a bit in terms of speeding, then you may not be aware of any accumulated issues.

Taking Action to Fix

The first thing that you can do is to check if your licence is still valid by going to the Department of Transport website. If you find an issue and have indeed run into some trouble due to driving without a licence, then you should get in touch with a solicitor to help you put things right.

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