Today we will consider driving licences and penalty points.

I am often asked "How long do points count for and when can I get a clean licence?" The short, and complicated, answer is they count for as long as the law imposes a higher, or additional, penalty and they must remain on the licence for one year after that.

For example, if you have a total of 12 points imposed within three years, you will be disqualified for at least 6 months. Accordingly the points will count for three years and will need to remain on your licence for four years, before you can get a clean licence. Similarly, if you have a second conviction for drunk driving or related charges within 10 years of the first conviction, your disqualification must be for at least 3 years. Accordingly the disqualification counts for 10 years and you cannot get a clean licence for 11 years.

Incidentally it is the dates of the offences which matter and not the date the licence is endorsed or the court appearance. Thus if your first offence was, for example, on 3rd April 1999, that will count for further offences committed before 3rd April 2002, even though you are not taken to court for some time after that.

Note too that, whether or not you subsequently obtain a new clean licence, that does not stop the court finding out that you had previous convictions endorsed on your licence and taking them into account when passing sentence. The difference is, where the endorsements count as a matter of law, the court must take them into account and impose a higher sentence. Where previous endorsements do not count as a matter of law, the court may take them into account in passing sentence.

Endorsements on a licence are an exception to the normal rule that the court cannot refer to any previous conviction unless the Fiscal has served you with a list of them. The court must look at any endorsements which are on your licence before sentencing. This exception arises because the endorsement could have been imposed without your having been through a court following upon paying a fixed penalty.

It does not work to "lose" your licence in the hope that previous matters will be overlooked. Today the courts have a direct link to DVLA at Swansea and can print out your record in minutes. It is, of course, a serious offence thereafter to use a duplicate, or your "lost", licence in an attempt to avoid showing your true record.

Incidentally, when dealing with the new picture licences, the court requires both parts, i.e. the paper and photograph.

One other matter. Please do not drive to court if you are at risk of disqualification. Any disqualification imposed takes effect immediately and you will not be able to drive home without committing the serious offence of driving whilst disqualified.

And finally, another Edinburgh tale. It was a filthy, wet, winter night when the boys on motorway patrol came across the 1000cc motorbike parked on the hard shoulder with the cyclist in full black leather gear standing miserably beside it. "What's wrong?" "No petrol." The boys turn, go back into Edinburgh and return with a can of petrol. "O.K. Open the filler cap." "Can't. It’s frozen." "Well pee on it then." "Can't. Too embarrassed." So one of the boys duly performs, cap unfrozen, petrol poured in and bike disappears off into the night. A job well done.

Their good deed only came to light when the Chief Constable received a letter full of praise for what the boys had done for the writer's daughter.