Licence expired

carbuyer01

Hello,

I hope this is the right forum.

I was stopped while driving 10 days ago and given ten days to produce my licence, i only got in the weekend and it should be here in a week or so i hope.

When i arrived in it turns out my licence has been out since last August.

As the 10 days are up i contacted the garda station who basically told me they cant do anything but bring in the licence once i get it.

What are the consequences here, points, insurance increase, fine etc?

Thanks

Cee-Jay-Cee

Possibly an on the spot fine for driving with out a valid licence so long as everything else is in order. If your insurance was also expired or the tax was out then you could be prosecuted for the licence as they would throw the whole lot in together.

carbuyer01

Thanks a million for that
Tax / insurance / nct all fine, just the licence.

Regarding the fine, any idea what we are talking about here

Sorry for the questions

Wishbone Ash

There's a huge difference between not having a licence and having an expired licence. The number is what's important. I'm not sure if it's still the case but you can drive for up to 10 years on an expired licence before having to start from scratch again.

Cee-Jay-Cee

Not sure to be honest, I think it might be €50. The only good thing is that there are no penalty points associated with it.

carbuyer01

Thanks Cee Jay Cee,

I don't mind the fine, i presume it will be a summons and day in court or would it be as simple as the guards saying pay up here and its done?

carbuyer01

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

There's a huge difference between not having a licence and having an expired licence. The number is what's important. I'm not sure if it's still the case but you can drive for up to 10 years on an expired licence before having to start from scratch again.

Thanks Wishbone, well i hope its not a big deal. Once it means no points and a small fine im good with that.

GM228

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

There's a huge difference between not having a licence and having an expired licence. The number is what's important. I'm not sure if it's still the case but you can drive for up to 10 years on an expired licence before having to start from scratch again.

No you can't drive on an expired licence, yes you can obtain a new licence within 10 years, but legally you can't drive on a licence which at the time is not in force.

GM228

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

Not sure to be honest, I think it might be €50. The only good thing is that there are no penalty points associated with it.

Try again, it's potentially up to €1000 or €2000 (depending on how long out of date). The actual fine will be up to the judge. Average is around €200-€300 for such offences.

carbuyer01

Thanks for that, i was thinking 50 might be too good to be true, slight error hopefully they'll see it that way and not throw the book at me.

carbuyer01

OSI wrote: »

If you can't produce within the 10 days it's quite possible you'll get a court appearance for not producing. Anecdotal evidence suggests this will be struck out if you produce a valid license in the court on the day, but I wouldn't take it as a guarantee.

Thanks OSI.
If its thrown out those that mean the fine is also thrown out?

carbuyer01

GM228 wrote: »

No you can't drive on an expired licence, yes you can obtain a new licence within 10 years, but legally you can't drive on a licence which at the time is not in force.

Thanks GM228, you are the bearer of bad news

coylemj

carbuyer01 wrote: »

Thanks OSI.
If its thrown out those that mean the fine is also thrown out?

OSI obviously didn't notice where you said that your licence expired last August.

His post refers to someone who had a valid licence on the day they were stopped at a checkpoint but forgot to produce it within 10 days.

RacoonQueen

Your expired licence would also invalidate your insurance, so possibly technically not insured either? Depends on the guard probably whether they will be harsh or not.

GM228

RacoonQueen wrote: »

Your expired licence would also invalidate your insurance, so possibly technically not insured either? Depends on the guard probably whether they will be harsh or not.

No, the majority of insurance policies require you have or previously had a valid licence.

dogtoffee

carbuyer01 wrote:

As the 10 days are up i contacted the garda station who basically told me they cant do anything but bring in the licence once i get it.

I was in the same position I showed the gard evidence of my application she made a record of it and when it arrived I went back the 10 days is at the gards discretion

Fishdoodle

I wouldn't worry about it too much ... seems a genuine mistake. Get your new licence ASAP, even if that means waiting in the queue (rather than making an online appointment). Keep a record of your application with you. To be extra safe I'd avoid driving while your new licence is being issued ... Usually you'll be sent a text when your licence is being dispatched ...takes about 3 days to arrive then. The Garda seems like a decent person, you could keep him up-to-date, and call in as soon as you get your new licence. If thers's a fine ...so be it - you'd be in a far worse position if you were driving dangerously Id imagine.

meathstevie

An expired driving licence is not the same as no entitlement to drive. You lose your entitlement only when you're disqualified or on medical grounds. If you never passed a driving test you can only ever be a learner driver.

Driving on an expired licence is nowhere near as serious as driving without an entitlement to drive.

coylemj

RacoonQueen wrote: »

Your expired licence would also invalidate your insurance, so possibly technically not insured either? Depends on the guard probably whether they will be harsh or not.

This one gets trotted out every time. It is not true, see below.

GM228 wrote: »

No, the majority of insurance policies require you have or previously had a valid licence.

+1 and are not disqualified. And make that all policies.

Even if someone new to the market inserts that condition (that you must have a current licence) in their terms and condition, it counts for nothing because an EU directive says they can't use an expired licence as an excuse to deny a claim.

Where they think they can get away with it, insurance companies will attempt to insert ridiculous Ts & Cs, which is why the EU stepped in. For example, at one stage one of the regular insurers inserted the condition that your tax disc had to be current for your insurance cover to remain in force. That one didn't last long!

carbuyer01

Thanks for the advice on this.

If for example i am convicted. Am i looking at this affecting my insurance???

Fishdoodle wrote: »

I wouldn't worry about it too much ... seems a genuine mistake. Get your new licence ASAP, even if that means waiting in the queue (rather than making an online appointment). Keep a record of your application with you. To be extra safe I'd avoid driving while your new licence is being issued ... Usually you'll be sent a text when your licence is being dispatched ...takes about 3 days to arrive then. The Garda seems like a decent person, you could keep him up-to-date, and call in as soon as you get your new licence. If thers's a fine ...so be it - you'd be in a far worse position if you were driving dangerously Id imagine.

carbuyer01

GM228 wrote: »

No, the majority of insurance policies require you have or previously had a valid licence.

Do you think this will affect insurance in the event of conviction. ?

Wishbone Ash

RacoonQueen wrote: »

Your expired licence would also invalidate your insurance....

Utter rubbish.

emeldc

I love these threads. A fine of anywhere between €50 and €2k to having no insurance. Jesus wept.
IMO you’ll just get a suspended sentence

carbuyer01

I guess my big issue is will this affect my insurance if convicted. My insurance is now manageable as a number of years ago i got hit by an uninsured driver who left the scene and im dreading having a huge premium again

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Utter
rubbish.

Johnny Red Cab

Get a solicitor would will do his best to get the matter struck out.