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#Post#: 128191--------------------------------------------------
Is it worth appealing a speeding ban? Totting up.
DIR By: crez5150
Date: August 19, 2026, 4:25 am
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I was banned yesterday for a totting up conviction. I am now
facing 6 months of no driving
I used a dedicated solicitors for this to help with my case but
was judged not to be enough of a hardship case. I'm utterly
gutted as I will now be let go from my job as it's part of my
remit to be able to drive.
Myself and the barrister appointed to me at the hearing thought
that I had a very good case to offer not to be banned for this
period. So far this has cost in the region of £2k
Has anyone experience or can offer some advice if it is worth
appealing this and going to the Crown Court with it. I do feel
that the evidence given was sufficient to grant a hardship waver
Any advice would be extremely welcome
Thanks
#Post#: 128196--------------------------------------------------
Re: Is it worth appealing a speeding ban? Totting up.
DIR By: andy_foster
Date: August 19, 2026, 4:44 am
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So, your barrister, who gets paid whether you win or lose,
thought it was worth paying him £2k.
You seem to think that we can give meaningful advice on whether
it is worth appealing to the Crown Court, based solely on your
opinion that there was sufficient evidence for the magistrates
to be able to find that a 6 month ban would cause exceptional
hardship.
#Post#: 128203--------------------------------------------------
Re: Is it worth appealing a speeding ban? Totting up.
DIR By: crez5150
Date: August 19, 2026, 6:23 am
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It was £1500 to the solicitors and nearly £500 court costs. I
was wondering if anyone had gone down the appeal route and what
their experience was, that was all really.
As the judges did not give any reply to me
#Post#: 128204--------------------------------------------------
Re: Is it worth appealing a speeding ban? Totting up.
DIR By: DWMB2
Date: August 19, 2026, 6:31 am
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It will be hard for anyone to offer meaningful advice as to your
chances of success, when you have told us nothing about the
grounds upon which you relied in the first place, nor the
evidence you presented to make your case for exceptional
hardship.
#Post#: 128208--------------------------------------------------
Re: Is it worth appealing a speeding ban? Totting up.
DIR By: Southpaw82
Date: August 19, 2026, 7:00 am
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--- Quote from: crez5150 link ---
>
> It was £1500 to the solicitors and nearly £500 court costs. I
was wondering if anyone had gone down the appeal route and what
their experience was, that was all really.
>
> As the judges did not give any reply to me
>
--- End Quote ---
Other people’s “experience” of an appeal to the Crown Court is
irrelevant. Facts matter. The point being made to you is that
you’ve given us zero relevant facts.
What is there that would mean banning you creates exceptional
hardship? That’s all that matters.
#Post#: 128223--------------------------------------------------
Re: Is it worth appealing a speeding ban? Totting up.
DIR By: NewJudge
Date: August 19, 2026, 8:39 am
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Appeals from the magistrates’ court to the Crown Court are heard
“de novo”, which means afresh, from scratch. So you do not have
to put forward the same argument as you did in the magistrates’’
court.
One thing to bear in mind if you do appeal to the Crown Court is
that your appeal will be heard by a judge and two magistrates
(from a different Bench to the one where you were disqualified).
The judge rules on matters of law but all three decide on
matters of fact (on which your appeal will be entirely based)..
This means the two magistrates can outvote the judge.
Furthermore, judges do not deal with “exceptional hardship”
arguments very often, whereas the magistrates do. The judge may
not have the same “feel” for the argument as the magistrates.
As above, you should beware of lawyers who suggest you have a
good chance of success. They get paid regardless.
The only hardship you have mentioned is that you will lose your
job. Here’s the guidance which magistrates (and the Crown Court)
use when deciding EH arguments:
When considering whether there are grounds to reduce or avoid a
totting up disqualification the court should have regard to the
following:
It is for the offender to prove to the civil standard of proof
that such grounds exist. Other than very exceptionally, this
will require evidence from the offender, and where such evidence
is given, it must be sworn.
Where it is asserted that hardship would be caused, the court
must be satisfied that it is not merely inconvenience, or
hardship, but exceptional hardship for which the court must have
evidence.
Almost every disqualification entails hardship for the person
disqualified and their immediate family. This is part of the
deterrent objective of the provisions combined with the
preventative effect of the order not to drive.
If a motorist continues to offend after becoming aware of the
risk to their licence of further penalty points, the court can
take this circumstance into account.
Courts should be cautious before accepting assertions of
exceptional hardship without evidence that alternatives
(including alternative means of transport) for avoiding
exceptional hardship are not viable.
Loss of employment will be an inevitable consequence of a
driving ban for many people. Evidence that loss of employment
would follow from disqualification is not in itself sufficient
to demonstrate exceptional hardship; whether or not it does will
depend on the circumstances of the offender and the consequences
of that loss of employment on the offender and/or others.
You will note from the final paragraph that losing your job, by
itself, is unlikely to see a successful EH plea. I don’t know
whether your barrister mentioned that to you when you discussed
your case. Another thing which magistrates consider for those
claiming hardship through loss of employment is mentioned a
couple of paragraphs earlier. Many take the view that if driving
is so essential, why did the defendant continue to offend,
knowing that his licence was in jeopardy?
Previous experiences are not much help with this issue because
every case turns individually on its merits. But you should also
be aware that an appeal will see you further out of pocket as
your barrister will want paying, win or lose. If you are
unsuccessful, the CPS will ask for more costs, possibly in eh
region of £700.
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