Motoring Offences

This work is carried out by:

Scott Taylor – Director of Taylor Law – Supervisor
Mark Lake – Senior Solicitor
Imogen Cox – Senior Solicitor
Ben Tighe – Solicitor

Our current hourly rates are £201 plus VAT per hour, with routine letters/telephone calls/emails (less than 6 minutes) costing £20.10 plus VAT. We shall be able to give you a more accurate costs estimate once we have seen you and are able to establish how complicated your case is. There are also likely to be disbursements to pay. These are costs associated with your matter paid to third parties such as expert fees, travel costs, copying charges etc. These will depend on your individual case.

Due to the experience of our criminal solicitors (both of whom are ex-duty solicitors), unlike many firms that deal with motoring offences, we do not routinely instruct barristers to attend court on your behalf, thus minimising costs.

In some cases, we are able to offer fixed fee representation. However, this depends upon various factors, such as the likely plea, how long any trial will take and the factual/ legal complexity of the case.

Usually, a guilty plea to a simple matter, at a court local to one of our offices, can be dealt with by way of a fixed fee. If we are required to travel to a court in a different town or city, if the case is likely to be lengthy or will involve complex factual disputes or legal points, then the fixed fee will be higher.

In some cases, for instance where a not guilty plea is intended, or where the precise amount of work required cannot be accurately estimated or is unusually complex, then we are likely to deal with your matter by way of an hourly rate. Not guilty plea cases, which result in trials, are likely to start from £2,000 plus VAT and disbursements.

Our guideline fixed fees, based on attendances at local courts, are as follows:
Guilty pleas (requiring a single attendance at court) – from £800 plus VAT*
(*Additional attendances, for instance following an adjournment, are charged at £400 plus VAT)
Please note that the above fees relate solely to Magistrates’ Court cases. Appeals against sentence
or conviction, or privately funded Crown Court matters, can only be quoted upon a full assessment
of the case papers.

The typical key stages of dealing with a motoring case are as follows:

In guilty plea cases:

– Taking your initial instructions, reviewing the papers, advising on plea and likely sentence and, in not guilty cases, the likely issues for trial;
– Attending the Magistrates’ Court for the first appearance; dealing with plea and sentence.

In not guilty plea cases, as above, plus:

– Dealing with case management at the first court appearance;
– Taking a proof of evidence from you, taking statements from witnesses, instructing experts, drafting statements;
– Considering further evidence served by the prosecution and taking your instructions on it;
– Considering unused material;
– Drafting legal arguments (in complex cases)
– Preparation for and attendance at trial.
– The stages set out above are an indication and if some of the stages above are not required, the costs will be reduced.

As to timescales, for guilty pleas, cases typically conclude on the same day as the first appearance. In not guilty cases, it usually takes between 2 to 3 months to conclude, although if the trial is vacated and re-fixed for any reason, then it may take around 4 to 6 months.