Drink Driving Offences and Penalties

In the Australia Capital Territory all drink driving charges have to go before the court. Therefore, if you are caught drink driving in the ACT you will be given a summons to attend court. The penalties include fines, licence disqualification periods, and terms of imprisonment.

Courts can order longer mandatory disqualification periods if the circumstances of the offending warrant it. but they cannot go below the minimum disqualification period set out in the Road Transport (Alcohol and Drugs) Act 1977.  The penalties are divided into four levels based on the offender’s prescribed concentration of alcohol (PCA) level. Level 1 is for special drivers (zero alcohol limit), level 2 is 0.05 to 0.079, level 3 is 0.08 to 0.149, and level 4 is 0.15 or higher.

Penalties for first drink driving offences in the ACT

If you are classed as a special driver (level 1) and meant to have a PCA of zero, and it is your first offence, then you can expect a fine of 5 penalty units ($800), and a default disqualification period of three months.  The magistrate can reduce this to a minimum of one month.

For level 2 PCA offences the penalty will include a fine of 5 penalty units ($800), and a default disqualification period of six months. This can be reduced to a minimum of two months.

Level 3 PCA offences will incur a fine of 10 penalty units ($1600) and/or a term of imprisonment of 6 months, and a default disqualification period of 12 months, which can be reduced to three months as the minimum.

All Level 4 PCA offences will result in receiving a fine of 15 penalty units ($2400) and/or a term of imprisonment of 9 months. The offender will also be disqualified for a default period of three years. The minimum the magistrate can reduce this period to is six months, though the likelihood of having the period reduced this low is remote without very persuasive submissions about mitigating circumstances, and why the offending warrants such leniency.

Penalties for repeat drink driving offences in the ACT

Repeat offenders will incur a much larger fine, and a much longer disqualification period. It does not matter how long ago you committed a previous drink driving offence or what the PCA was, it will still be taken into account for the penalty determination.

Level 1 and Level 2 PCA offences will incur a fine of 10 penalty units ($1600), and a default disqualification period of 12 months, which can be reduced to a minimum of 3 months.

Level 3 PCA offences will result in a fine of 10 penalty units ($1600), and/or imprisonment for 6 months, and a default disqualification period of 3 years, which can be reduced to a minimum of 6 months.

The penalties for a Level 4 PCA offence will include a fine of 20 penalty units ($3200), and/or a term of imprisonment for 12 months.  The default disqualification period will be 5 years, with the minimum 12 months.

The more drink driving offences a person has committed the more likely they are to have a term of imprisonment imposed, and the less likely the magistrate is to differ from the default disqualification period.

Penalties for non-PCA offences in the ACT

Other drink driving offences which do not rely on a PCA reading include driving under the influence, refusing to provide a breath sample, refusing to provide a blood sample, and failing to stay for a screening test. For first offences a person will incur a penalty of a fine at the magistrate’s discretion, and/or a term of imprisonment of 6 months, and a default disqualification of 3 years. Repeat offenders can expect a hefty fine probably equivalent to a Level 4 PCA offence, and/or a term of imprisonment of 12 months. They will also be disqualified from driving for 5 years. The magistrate can reduce the default disqualification period but not to less than six months for first offences, and 12 months for subsequent offences.

If you require legal advice or representation in any legal matter, please contact Armstrong Legal.