Negligent Driving - Charges and Penalties

There are three levels of negligent driving NSW offences that the police may charge a driver with - negligent driving; negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm; and negligent driving causing death. Penalties can range from fines, disqualification periods and imprisonment depending on what type of negligent driving offence you have been charged with. 

What the Court must take into account in assessing the likely penalty for negligent driving is the degree of negligence and, where relevant, the type and extent of any injuries sustained by anyone as a result of the negligence.

Our Traffic Law and Drink Driving Lawyers Sydney and NSW are experienced in negligent driving cases. We carefully analyse your case and advise you not only what penalties to expect if pleading guilty, but also if you can defend your matter (and therefore be found "not guilty") or have the charge reduced to a lesser offence.

Negligent Driving

This is the least serious negligent driving offence. A typical scenario where one is alleged to have committed the offence of negligent driving is where the police form the view that the driver was at fault in a collision. Due to incurring demerit points for this offence, some drivers may also be facing a licence suspension. It is possible to defend a negligent driving charge, and thus be found not guilty of the offence (and thus no points are taken from your licence).

Most negligent driving offences are dealt with by way of a traffic infringement notice, incurring a moderate fine and demerit points, only. However, if the matter is heard before a Court, upon a finding of guilty, the Court can impose a fine of up to $1,100 and also has the discretion to disqualify the driver for a period determined by the Court.

The matter can be heard before a Court if the driver takes the option to do so, either to seek leniency or, to defend the allegation. However, sometimes, the police charge drivers with the offence and commence the matter by way of a Court Attendance Notice, which means that the driver therefore does not have any other option but to appear before the Court in answer to the charge. As noted above, once the matter is before the Court, there is always a chance that the Court will disqualify the driver, especially if the Court forms the view that the degree of negligence is high and/or there was some injury to a person as the result of the negligence.

Negligent Driving Occasioning Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH)

This offence is committed where a driver is alleged to have been negligent and, as a result of the driver's negligence, grievous bodily harm has been caused to another person. The penalties for this offence can be severe and include possible terms of imprisonment. Even for a first time offender, the most likely result is a criminal conviction. Upon conviction, just like for most drink driving offences, a licence disqualification is mandatory.

It can be sometimes argued whether the injuries do in fact amount to grievous bodily harm and, if so, whether the injuries were in fact caused by the driver's negligence. It is important to seek legal advice if charged with this offence, to determine whether the allegation can be successfully defended. 

The penalties for negligent driving causing grievous bodily harm are as follows:  

Negligent Driving Occasioning Death

Upon conviction for negligent driving occasioning death, a Court will seriously consider some form of imprisonment as a penalty. As with the charge of negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, the Court will take into account, among other things, the degree of negligence. This is a serious offence that attracts severe penalties and it is important to seek legal advice and representation if charged.

The penalties for negligent driving causing death are as follows:  

Dangerous Driving

When it comes to Dangerous Driving NSW law dictates that severe penalties are to apply. Dangerous Driving offences are some of the more serious traffic offences that can be committed in NSW. It is important to properly consider all the circumstances of the factual allegations before entering a plea of guilty to these types of offences, due to the severity of punishment upon conviction.

The Law

Pursuant to section 117 of the Road Transport Act 2013, it is an offence to drive a motor vehicle on a road in a manner that is dangerous to the public.

Penalties

The below table sets out the available penalties upon conviction for dangerous driving (NSW):

What is "in a manner dangerous to the public"?

In the case of McBride the Court commented on what "dangerous to the public" involves: 

"The section speaks of a speed or manner which is dangerous to the public. This imports a quality in the speed or manner of driving which either intrinsically in all the circumstances, or because of the particular circumstances surrounding the driving, is in a real sense potentially dangerous to a human being or human beings who as a member or as members of the public may be upon or in the vicinity of the roadway on which the driving is taking place."

This accords with the legislative requirement to consider the following matters when determining whether the offence has been committed:

Whether or not someone is deemed to have driven a motor vehicle in a dangerous manner is not always immediately apparent. As noted above, the particular set of circumstances in each case must be considered. Sometimes, it can be successfully argued that the type of driving alleged does not amount to dangerous driving but instead, the much less serious form of "negligent" driving. Having a dangerous driving charge "downgraded" to negligent driving substantially reduces the severity of the likely penalties to be imposed. 

When the driver is alleged to have been involved in an accident, whether the course of conduct is considered dangerous rather than negligent can be a fine line. It has been determined in some cases that momentary inadvertence can amount to dangerous driving, depending on the surrounding circumstances.

Our lawyers have experience defending dangerous driving charges, having them downgraded to negligent driving and, where these two options are not available, we are experienced in representing clients pleading guilty to the charge, by attending Court and presenting a plea in mitigation of sentence with a view to reducing the likely penalties.

If you have been charged with a dangerous driving NSW traffic offence, our experts at Prime Lawyers - Traffic Law division can help. Contact us to make an appointment with a traffic lawyer at your nearest Prime Lawyers office.

Reckless Driving

Reckless driving is considered a serious traffic offence where upon conviction, lengthy disqualification periods and fines apply. In more serious cases, the Court will impose good behaviour bonds, community service orders and even imprisonment.

The Law

Pursuant to section 117 of the Road Transport Act 2013, it is an offence to drive recklessly. This provision also makes it an offence to drive furiously, at a dangerous speed or to drive in a manner dangerous to the public.

Penalties

The penalties for reckless driving are set out in the below table:

Commentary

As has been noted in our furious driving section, the police often charge drivers with "driving in a manner reckless/furious or dangerous to the public" when relying on circumstances that may amount to an allegation of reckless or dangerous driving. The approach is generally that the police do not have to nominate which specific type of driving they are relying on, but simply, that the type of driving falls somewhere within section 117 of the Road Transport Act.

It can, however, be argued that "reckless driving" has a slightly lower moral culpability than dangerous driving, although it is generally accepted that it is unlikely to make much of a difference to the end result, particularity where someone is pleading guilty to the charge alleged.

It is still important to consider what is meant by the term "reckless". Some take the approach that it simply means a higher degree of negligence, however, this is wrong. For a driver to be negligent, it is enough that they have not exercised the degree of care that would be expected of the ordinary, prudent driver. For a driver to be reckless, it would need to be shown that they knowingly disregarded their duties as a driver, posing a risk to others, and not caring whether or not their actions do in fact pose a risk to others.

For that reason, the available penalties for a reckless driving offence are much more severe than the penalties for negligent driving. 

If charged with a reckless driving offence, it is important to obtain legal advice from someone who has a proper understanding of the differences between negligent driving and reckless driving, because it could well mean the difference between a fine and gaol time. Our team of traffic lawyers will be able to advise you whether police may have unfairly formed a view that you were reckless and have charged you with the more serious version of this type of driving offence.

If you have been charged with reckless driving and require legal assistance, our experts at Prime Lawyers - Traffic Division can help. Contact us to make an appointment with a traffic lawyer at your nearest Prime Lawyers office.

Furious Driving

Furious driving is considered a serious traffic offence where upon conviction, lengthy disqualification periods and fines apply. In more serious cases, the Court will impose good behaviour bonds, community service orders and even imprisonment. Due to the severe penalties that can be imposed, it is important to seek legal advice from a traffic lawyer experienced in serious traffic offences. Our Traffic Lawyers Sydney and NSW have the knowledge and experience required to represent those charges with serious traffic offences.

The Law

Pursuant to section 117 of the Road Transport Act 2013, it is an offence to drive furiously. The provision also makes it an offence to drive in a manner dangerous, speed dangerous or recklessly and often, police will be vague in their description of the offence and rely on all offences.

Penalties

The penalties for driving furiously are set out in the below table:

If someone is convicted of furious driving causing injury the maximum penalty is 2 years imprisonment. This, however, is a separate and distinct offence.

Commentary

Despite the police charging drivers with "drive furiously, recklessly, or in a speed/manner dangerous", it can sometimes be helpful to press the police to choose which specific type of driving they are relying on. It must be noted, however, that the definitions or concepts of furious driving and dangerous driving are very similar. Further, the offence provision and therefore the penalties are the same and if someone is pleading "guilty" to this offence, then it may not really matter, as the essential factual allegations being relied on by the police would not change, despite there sometimes being room to argue a lesser degree of moral culpability.

So what does it mean to "drive furiously?" Of course, given that this is a serious driving offence that can result in a term of imprisonment, it must be something more than driving whilst angry or even enraged. Furious driving has been found to be driving that endangers the life or limb of a passenger or any person who might be expected to be on the road.

Therefore, although the penalties for furious driving are the same as for reckless driving, it may be argued that the concept of recklessness is not as serious as that of driving furiously. Over time, however, the concepts of reckless, furious and dangerous driving have been blurred and the distinction between them eroded, and therefore, the types of offending the Courts have found them to encompass have been broadened and in most cases this means that little can often be gained by arguing the distinction between the different concepts.

However, much can be gained if one is able to negotiate with the prosecution to reduce the charge to negligent driving which, as a starting point, does not attract automatic periods of disqualification or, in a worst case scenario, a term of imprisonment.

Police often rely on circumstantial evidence or accounts given by witnesses when charging someone with furious driving and it is therefore possible to successfully defend such a charge, by arguing that the driving, although perhaps negligent, did not amount to being furious.

If you have been charged with furious driving and require legal assistance, our experts at Prime Lawyers - Traffic Division can help. Contact us to make an appointment with a traffic lawyer at your nearest Prime Lawyers office.