Penalty points, totting up and driving bans (Scotland)
Most driving offences carry penalty points. Reach 12 points within 3 years and the court must normally ban you for at least 6 months, and new drivers lose their licence at 6 points within 2 years of passing. Here is how the rules work in Scotland.
Add up your points and check your totting-up and new driver risk.
Open the points calculator →How long points stay on your licence
The same UK-wide rules apply in Scotland. Most endorsements stay on your driving record for 4 years from the offence date. Drink and drug driving endorsements stay for 11 years from conviction (in-charge offences for 4 years). For totting up, points only count if the offences were committed within 3 years of each other.
Totting up: 12 points in 3 years
If your points reach 12 or more within 3 years, the court (including a JP court) must ban you for at least 6 months. The minimum rises to 1 year if you had one ban of 56 days or more in the previous 3 years, and 2 years if you had more than one.
New drivers: 6 points in 2 years
If your points reach 6 or more within 2 years of passing your first driving test, the DVLA revokes your licence. Unexpired points from a provisional licence count. You must apply for a provisional licence and pass the theory and practical tests again. This is not a court ban, so exceptional hardship can't prevent it.
Exceptional hardship
A court can shorten or avoid a totting-up ban only if a ban would cause exceptional hardship. Ordinary hardship, and arguments that the offence wasn't serious, don't count, and anything already used in the last 3 years can't be used again. Hardship to other people, such as family or employees, is often the focus. This is different from "special reasons", which relate to the circumstances of the offence itself.
Drink-drive limits
| Breath | 22 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml |
|---|---|
| Blood | 50 milligrams per 100ml |
| Urine | 67 milligrams per 100ml |
Scotland's limits since 5 December 2014 are lower than England, Wales and Northern Ireland (35 breath, 80 blood, 107 urine), as confirmed on gov.uk.
Drink-driving bans
Driving over the limit, driving while unfit or failing to provide a specimen carries a ban of at least 12 months (at least 3 years for a second conviction within 10 years), up to 6 months in prison and a fine of up to £5,000. Being in charge while over the limit carries 10 points or a ban. A rehabilitation course can reduce a ban of 12 months or more by up to a quarter, and high-risk offenders must pass a DVLA medical before getting their licence back.
Conditional offers and fixed penalties
In Scotland, police and safety camera units usually send a "conditional offer of fixed penalty". Amounts are set UK-wide: speeding £100 and 3 points; hand-held mobile phone £200 and 6 points; failing to say who was driving £200 and 6 points; no insurance £300 and 6 points. You have 28 days to accept and pay. It is not a court conviction, but if points are endorsed the endorsement counts as one for spent-conviction purposes. If you don't accept, the case can be reported to the Procurator Fiscal.
Losing your vehicle
Scottish courts can order the forfeiture of the vehicle used in some serious driving offences, including drink and drug driving, when the prosecutor asks. It is not automatic: the court decides.
Speeding in Scotland
Scotland has no speeding sentencing guideline: the Scottish Sentencing Council has no guideline on speeding and the England and Wales Sentencing Council bands (A, B, C) do not apply in Scottish courts, although some sheriffs and justices may be aware of them. Speeding cases that go to court are usually prosecuted by the procurator fiscal in the Justice of the Peace court (or sometimes the sheriff court), and the court decides the penalty on the facts, the speed, the location and the driver's record. The legal framework is UK-wide: the maximum fine is level 3 (£1,000) or level 4 (£2,500) on a motorway; the court must endorse 3 to 6 points (3 if a fixed penalty is accepted) or may instead impose a discretionary disqualification. There are no fixed thresholds in Scots law for when a ban is imposed.
Not available in Scotland. Safety Camera Scotland (Police Scotland) states that speed awareness courses are currently not available for offences committed in Scotland. Drivers are offered a conditional offer (£100 and 3 points) or reported to the procurator fiscal.
Common endorsement codes and points
| Code | Offence | Points | Ban |
|---|---|---|---|
| SP30 | Exceeding statutory speed limit on a public road | 3-6 | discretionary |
| SP50 | Exceeding speed limit on a motorway | 3-6 | discretionary |
| CU80 | Breach of requirements as to control of the vehicle, including using a hand-held mobile phone | 3-6 | discretionary |
| IN10 | Using a vehicle uninsured against third party risks | 6-8 | discretionary |
| DR10 | Driving or attempting to drive with alcohol above the limit | 3-11 | obligatory (minimum 12 months; 3 years if previous drink/drug-drive conviction in 10 years) |
| DR20 | Driving or attempting to drive while unfit through drink | 3-11 | obligatory (minimum 12 months; 3 years for a repeat within 10 years) |
| DR30 | Driving or attempting to drive then failing to supply a specimen for analysis | 3-11 | obligatory (minimum 12 months; 3 years for a repeat within 10 years) |
| DR40 | In charge of a vehicle while alcohol level above limit | 10 | discretionary |
| DR50 | In charge of a vehicle while unfit through drink | 10 | discretionary |
| DG10 | Driving or attempting to drive with drug level above the specified limit | 3-11 | obligatory (minimum 12 months) |
| DG40 | In charge of a vehicle while drug level above specified limit | 10 | discretionary |
| DR80 | Driving or attempting to drive when unfit through drugs | 3-11 | obligatory (minimum 12 months) |
| CD10 | Driving without due care and attention | 3-9 | discretionary |
| CD20 | Driving without reasonable consideration for other road users | 3-9 | discretionary |
| CD30 | Driving without due care and attention or without reasonable consideration | 3-9 | discretionary |
| DD40 | Dangerous driving | 3-11 | obligatory (minimum 12 months) plus extended retest |
| MS90 | Failure to give information as to identity of driver (RTA s.172) | 6 | discretionary |
| LC20 | Driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence | 3-6 | discretionary |
| TS10 | Failing to comply with traffic light signals | 3 | discretionary |
| CU10 | Using a vehicle with defective brakes | 3 | discretionary |
| AC10 | Failing to stop after an accident | 5-10 | discretionary |
| PC10 | Undefined contravention of pedestrian crossing regulations | 3 | discretionary |
| BA10 | Driving while disqualified by order of court | 6 | discretionary |
| TT99 | Disqualification under totting-up (12 or more points in 3 years) | 0 | totting-up disqualification (minimum 6 months) |
Common questions
What is the drink-drive limit in Scotland?
Scotland's drink-drive limit is 22 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, 50 milligrammes in 100 millilitres of blood, or 67 milligrammes in 100 millilitres of urine. These limits have applied since 5 December 2014 under the Road Traffic Act 1988 (Prescribed Limit) (Scotland) Regulations 2014. They are lower than the limits in the rest of the UK, so an amount of alcohol that is legal elsewhere could put you over the limit in Scotland. There is no reliable safe amount to drink before driving, and alcohol can still be in your system the next morning.
What is the penalty for drink driving in Scotland?
Driving or attempting to drive over the limit, under section 5 of the Road Traffic Act 1988, carries up to six months' imprisonment and a fine of up to £5,000 in Scotland, plus a minimum 12-month driving ban. The minimum ban rises to three years if you have another drink or drug-driving conviction within 10 years. Being in charge of a vehicle while over the limit carries a lower penalty and a possible ban. Failing to provide a breath, blood or urine specimen without a reasonable excuse is treated as seriously as drink driving. The court can also order the vehicle to be forfeited.
Can my car be taken away for drink driving in Scotland?
Yes. Under section 33A of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, which applies only in Scotland, a court can order a vehicle to be forfeited when someone is convicted of a road traffic offence punishable by imprisonment and committed while driving or in charge of it, including drink or drug driving and failing to provide a specimen. The procurator fiscal applies for forfeiture when asking the court to sentence, and the court can grant a warrant to seize the vehicle before the case ends. Forfeited vehicles are disposed of as the court directs. If the vehicle belongs to someone else, they should get legal advice quickly.
What are the drug-driving limits in Scotland?
Since 21 October 2019, it has been an offence in Scotland to drive with certain drugs in your blood above specified limits, under section 5A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Drug Driving (Specified Limits) (Scotland) Regulations 2019. The limits are very low for illegal drugs such as cannabis and cocaine, and higher for some prescription medicines such as diazepam and morphine. There is a defence if you took a prescribed or supplied medicine in line with the instructions. Driving while unfit through drugs is a separate offence. Both offences carry a minimum 12-month driving ban.
How do penalty points and totting-up work?
Most driving offences carry penalty points, which are added to your driving record. Under section 35 of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, if you reach 12 or more points within three years, the court must disqualify you for at least six months, known as a totting-up ban. The minimum is one year if you have had a ban of 56 days or more in the previous three years, and two years if you have had two or more. Points stay on your driving record for four years, or 11 years for drink and drug-driving offences. The same rules apply throughout Great Britain.
What happens if I get six points as a new driver?
If you get six or more penalty points within two years of passing your first driving test, your licence will be revoked under the Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act 1995. Valid points you received before passing your test also count. Revocation is carried out by the DVLA, not the court, and it is automatic. You then have to apply for a provisional licence and pass both the theory and practical tests again before you can drive unsupervised. A single mobile phone offence or insurance offence, each carrying six points, is enough to lose your licence.
Official sources
Primary sources and official guidance on this topic, for anyone who wants to read the underlying rules directly.
- GOV.UK: Endorsement codes and penalty points
- GOV.UK: Penalty points - new drivers
- GOV.UK: The drink drive limit
- GOV.UK: Disqualification for drink-driving
- GOV.UK: Speeding penalties
- Safety Camera Scotland (Police Scotland): Questions and answers
- Fixed Penalty Order 2000, Schedule 1
- Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, section 34
- Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, section 35
- Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, section 33A (forfeiture of vehicles: Scotland)
- Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, Schedule 2 Part I
- Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, section 225 (standard scale in Scotland)
- Highland Council: Tough new laws could see drink drivers lose their vehicles (Dec 2009)
- Scottish Sentencing Council: Approved guidelines