FAILURE TO PROVIDE

Drink and drug driving is common and the consequences of being caught can be serious to the person and their family. Having a ban can lead to losing one’s job, not being able to care for dependants and social embarrassment. It is important to provide evidence to support your case in the courts. 

Solicitors cannot guarantee success but remain the gold standard approach if you have the tens of thousands of pounds required. The solicitor will obtain an expert report but typically pays 3-6 times as much as contacting the expert directly. They will arrange a barrister to explain the legal options and represent you in court. 

Barristers can be instructed directly and generally this saves 50% of the cost compare with when arranged through a solicitor. Barristers cannot obtain evidence so you would need to arrange this yourself including a medical report. They will attend court and cross examine witnesses such as the Health Care Professional and the Police Expert on the testing procedures. You may wish to obtain a copy of police procedures to ensure that they were complied with in your case. 

Disability analysts can provide a report that assesses if you have a reasonable excuse for not giving the sample when the police asked you to. The CCTV and BWV, the form MGDD/A, printouts of breath samples and your GP records can all help with this assessment. The expert will prefer an in person assessment so that they can perform spirometry. If your practice nurse does the spirometry a cheaper virtual assessment may be appropriate.

Drug and alcohol testing is available privately and through the GP (ask for CDT blood test). This can show that you are not dependent on drugs or alcohol which is important if they send your case to the DVLA. It can also help the expert because they can then confirm your history which strengthens your case. 

Pleading guilty has a number of advantages because only small percent of those who go to court are found innocent. This means that you will save any money that you were going to spend as well as avoiding the court processes. You may get a lighter sentence if they give you time off for guilty plea. You may be unable to drive due to the DVLA anyway and it is best if these both run at the same time