AN URGENT warning has been issued to thousands of Irish drivers using a loophole to avoid penalty points, as it is set to end next month.
A legal loophole that allows motorists to receive a 24-hour driving disqualification in order to avoid penalty points is set to be closed in April, the Department of Transport reveals.
When the drivers are almost at 12 penalty points on their licence, some drivers have used Section 2.8 of the Road Traffic Act 2002 to avoid getting six-month driving suspensions.
Section 2.8 permits drivers to earn an auxiliary driving prohibition instead of penalty points, which is how the loophole works.
The duration of this driving ban is determined by the specific judge overseeing the penalty points case.
After the Irish Times first brought attention to the loophole in 2024, a law was recently passed in an attempt to close it, allowing the judge to impose both penalty points and driving bans for a single offence.
The process of merging applying bans and apply penalty points has taken some time.
Still, provisions for closing the loophole are expected to be finalised in the next few weeks, according to the Department of Transport.
Recently, KFM Radio reported that a woman in front of Naas District Court was likely to receive five penalty points for not wearing a seat belt.
However, she had the points removed and instead received the 24-hour driving ban by using the loophole.
Elsewhere, thousands of Irish learner drivers have expressed frustrations with delays as the latest stats from the RSA show that test waiting times have increased again.
The Road Safety Authority’s latest figure shows that were 74,674 people on the list waiting for a date in February, an increase of just over 2,000 compared to January.
The stats also revealed that the estimated national average waiting time has increased from 22 weeks in January to 23 weeks last month.
However, the RSA’s target meant that no one should be waiting more than 10 weeks for their driving test.
And none of the 61 test centres nationwide meet the goal.
‘EXTREMELY FRUSTRATED’
Many learner drivers have been in the system for a total of ten months, including Matthew Duff.
Talking to RTE News, he revealed that he applied for a retest and still has not heard back with a confirmed date.
He said that the delay has a major effect on his daily life, including lengthening his commutes because he is only able to drive when accompanied by a fully qualified driver.
He said: “I’m extremely frustrated over it. I live in Ratoath. I go to college in Coolock, and I also work in town. Public transport wise, it just doesn’t cut it.
“I’m normally late to college because it takes about two hours to get there [compared to 40 minutes in the car].
“Not having a license prevents me from actually getting more work in other counties.”
PLANS TO REDUCE DELAYS
In hopes to reduce the delays of waiting time, the RSA and the Department of Transport stated that additional testers have been recruited.
The first group of testers has begun their training and is set to see 200 testers once completed.
It is anticipated that the intention to reinstate the ten-week waiting period and steps to expedite that process will be at the forefront of the Minister of Transport’s upcoming meeting with the RSA.
Brendan Walsh, the chief operations officer at the RSA, said: “This is an important first step in bringing down driving test waiting times and I am confident that we will see a significant improvement over the coming months.”
