I let My 15 Year old Have A Go At Driving

Question:

Teaching under age driver on private property

Very stupidly, I allowed my 15 year old to get behind the wheel on a large private area that was an old airfield and is currently used for paint balling. He had about 5 minutes behind the wheel and never got past 1st gear.

We were just going when a car pulled up and told us that the area was under CCTV and that I would be sent to court and will lose my licence. I am devastated. Can you tell me what I need to do, Thank you. This happened today, I await with dread a court summons.

Paula Says:

I’m afraid that if the public have access to an area it is classed as a public place as far as the road traffic laws are concerned and therefore your son has to have a licence and has to be insured. Your son will be at risk of 6-8 penalty points for driving without insurance and without a licence.

If he is convicted these points will be endorsed on his driving record – rather than licence. When he passes his test he will have 6 points on the licence when it is issued.

You will be at risk of 6 points for permitting him to drive without insurance. Have you got any points already? If so, how many? Are you a new driver at risk of revocation – tell me more.

You will both have a potential special reasons argument to avoid the points based on the shortness of distance driven and also based on the fact that you were driving under the misapprehension that the land in question was private and not covered by the road traffic laws. I think this argument will be worth making.

Come back to me with further information about why you think you are at risk of losing your licence.