Motoring Fees
Privately Funded Motoring Cases
The firm’s website complies with Law Society costs transparency rules to ensure you receive essential costs information and has been approved by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. We have set out below details of how our fixed fees operate together with the timescales involved for each type of case. Please note that in the event that if you do not approach us promptly and we are unable to secure an advocate for the level and fee quoted below, we will agree the alternative fee with you before we proceed to take on your case.
Fixed fees
We charge £705 preparation fee and £630 representation fee per hearing with low initial deposit (£165) which counts towards the preparation fee.
If the case is discontinued 7 days or more before the hearing the £630 representation fee is not payable. All figures include VAT at 20%. Travel expenses are charged separately.
Not Guilty Plea Cases
To illustrate how the fixed fees operate, the total charge for not guilty plea case is
£705 if case discontinued before first hearing
£1335 (£705 plus £630) if case discontinued at the first hearing, or
£2040 (£1335 plus £705) if charges discontinued 7 days before second hearing, or
£2670 (£1335 plus £1335) if case concluded at second hearing
Fixed fees apply to further hearings. All figures include VAT at 20%. The fees may include the following where applicable –
- attendance and case preparation
- making representations to police for no further action
- inviting prosecution to discontinue charges
- request for video from arrest, booking in & specimen procedures before destruction
- taking your instructions
- full advice on case after reviewing the evidence
- plea bargain for penalty points instead of driving ban
- representation in the Magistrates Court.
The fees do not cover representation at an appeal or optional experts fees.
Guilty Plea Cases
The total charge for guilty plea is £1335 for representation at single hearing.
Fixed fees apply for further hearings if necessary. All figures include VAT at 20%. The fees may include the following where applicable –
- attendance and case preparation
- advice on preparing statement
- advice on character references
- review of evidence
- taking instructions
- advice on likely sentence
- representation in the Magistrates Court
- plea in mitigation to minimise penalties
- plea bargain for penalty points instead of driving ban
- advice on appeal
The fees do not include representation on appeal or optional experts fees (which are unusual in guilty plea cases involving a single hearing).
Assistance Without Representation
If we are not required to attend court but we help prepare your case or undertake other work on your case the total charge for assistance without representation is
£705 for case preparation towards one hearing.
Fixed fees apply for further hearings if necessary. All figures include VAT at 20%. The fees may include the following where applicable –
- attendance and preparation
- making representations to police for no further action
- inviting prosecution to discontinue charges
- asking for video from arrest, booking in & specimen procedures before destruction
- taking instructions
- advice on case after reviewing the evidence.
The preparation fee £705 will also apply where we are initially instructed to represent you but then not required to do so for any reason including discontinuance of charges by police or cancellation. This list is not exhaustive.
The fees do not include representation at court or experts fees or appeal.
Recovering Your Costs
If we successfully defend your case we may ask for a defence costs order which will reimburse a proportion if not all your legal fees. This is claimed back at an hourly rate under Government rules.
Choosing Your Level Of Service
You can choose the seniority of the lawyer who represents you in court.
Bronze service
Bronze service
Silver Service
Silver Service
Platinum Service
Platinum Service
Gold Service (Trials Only)
Gold Service (Trials Only)
Experience Of Person Dealing With Your Case
All cases are supervised by a Solicitor with 10 years experience or more.
Timescales
Guilty plea cases usually take 0 to 2 months. Not guilty plea cases take around 3 to 6 months. Appeals take on average 2 to 4 months. The timescale depends on the Court listings.
Number of Hearings
The minimum number of hearings necessary to deal with the case is one hearing for a guilty plea and two hearings for a not guilty plea if there is a trial. Most guilty plea cases are dealt at the first hearing or two hearings if the case involves special reasons or the Court needs to adjourn before sentencing which is unusual.
Some not guilty plea cases may necessitate more than two hearings. It is not possible to be certain about the number of hearings as this will depend on whether the case is complex or additional hearings may be requested by the court or prosecution. We may agree a discount on fees where more than two hearings are necessary and an additional hearing is within a short time of the previous one. Appeals will require a single hearing for straightforward cases or a minimum of two hearings if against conviction.
Length of Hearings
On the date of hearing your case may be called into court at any time during the court session depending on the order of cases.
Hearings may take anything from 5 minutes to half a day or if the hearing is a trial or appeal the case may take a full day. In exceptional cases hearings may take more than one day.
Hearings may be dealt with in person or by video link or administratively in writing in the absence of the parties or legal representatives.
Continuation of Service
Our services will continue after each hearing until the conclusion of the case unless you notify us within 2 days of the previous hearing.
The following key stages apply to your case when you are due to attend court.
Not Guilty Plea Cases Process
• We will provide initial advice on whether there are grounds to defend the charges based on your instructions.
• We may ask the prosecution in writing to discontinue charges before the first hearing saving you the worry of attending court.…
• We will represent you at first hearing when legal arguments will be set out in the PET (preparation for effective trial) form.
• We may have discussions with the prosecution at the first hearing for them to reconsider proceeding with the charges.
• The case will be adjourned towards the trial after entering a not guilty plea. The trial is when the court decides the outcome.
• If you prefer we may offer a plea bargain at the first hearing with the possibility of 10 penalty points instead of an automatic driving ban where appropriate.
• You will continue to drive after the first hearing until the trial assuming your have a full driving licence and are not subject to bail conditions.
• We will give full advice on the case and the chances of success after reviewing all the evidence including police video footage and expert reports. This will be from around 6 weeks after the first hearing up until the trial.
• Before the trial we may request that the prosecution drops the charges if the evidence supports your case or a fair trial is not possible due to police failing to disclose evidence.
• If the case proceeds to the trial the charges may be dismissed after presenting legal argument.
• If it is not possible to have the charges dismissed we may argue special reasons to avoid a driving ban or we may put forward personal mitigation to mimimise the penalties.
• If you are disqualified you have the option of lodging an appeal against conviction or sentence and applying to suspend disqualification which may enable you to continue driving until the appeal.
Guilty Plea Cases Process
• After taking your instructions and giving advice on evidence and likely sentence we will prepare your case.
• You will receive advice on how to structure your statement and obtain character references.
• You will also receive information …about what to expect at court.
• The evidence will be requested and we will take your comments to prepare the case.
• We will send instructions to your advocate who will meet you before the hearing to answer any questions and put you at ease.
• We will present a plea in mitigation and recommend to the court the lowest possible sentence.
• We will advise you on appeal if necessary.
Experts Fees
Expert reports are optional for which the expert may charge separately. It may be possible to avoid a ban without the need for expert reports. Costs range from around £200 to £800 (scientific reports) or £360 to £750 (medical reports) If it is necessary for the expert to attend Court they will claim their fees for attending from the Court. We may ask for payment on account to cover these fees in the event the Court refuses to authorise their costs which tends to be the exception. This may be in the region of £500 to £1000. These estimates exclude VAT at 20%.
Appeals
If the matter concerns an appeal the fees are the same except the representation fee is £1200. This figure includes VAT at 20%.