This is a new offence created by Parliament, and is known as Section 2C of the Road Traffic Act 1988. The commencement date for this was 28th June 2022. This means any careless driving offences committed after that date, where serious injury has been caused, will fall into this new category of offending. The purpose of creating this offence of careless driving causing severe injury, was to allow the courts to impose more serious sentences, such as a maximum of 2 years imprisonment, and to enforce a mandatory period of disqualification of not less than 12 months.

Drivers must now realise that they will be held more accountable for severe injuries caused by careless driving, and that the punishment will reflect that with harder sentences, to act as a deterrent.

Prior to 28th June 2022, the only charge available to the prosecution was that of careless driving where the sentence would reflect the level of driving, more than the consequences of it. So where the driving amounted to a momentary lapse of concentration which nevertheless resulted in serious injury to other road users, the courts would consider the injury as a secondary issue, the primary focus being on the manner of driving. This meant that many people would still only receive penalty points and a fine,despite causing serious injury.

Now, where the injury caused by careless driving is severe, such as a broken bone, the court has to impose a minimum disqualification of 12 months, and would require to consider whether a custodial sentence ought to be imposed in terms of Section 2C of the Road Traffic Act 1988.

This is in stark contrast with a conviction for careless driving under section 3 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 for which a custodial sentence is not even competent.

The reality of the situation is that this charge could be a blessing in disguise. Many cases where serious injury has resulted from a driving offence in our experience was over prosecuted by charging the driver with causing severe injury by dangerous driving, where the manner of the driving did not fall into the dangerous category. There seemed to be a marking policy, in cases where severe injury was caused, to escalate the offence to dangerous driving, ie S1A of the Road Traffic Act 1988 rather than just prosecuting as careless driving, in the absence of this new charge.

This meant many clients had to defend a causing severe injury by dangerous driving charge, with all the worry and anxiety of being convicted of causing severe injury by dangerous driving where the manner of driving was at worst careless, particularly at the upper end of careless driving.

This new charge will hopefully prevent that from happening. It is however important to speak to a specialist road traffic firm as soon as possible to ensure your rights are protected, and if necessary, in order to carry out early investigations to preserve evidence in your favour. All said and done, the stakes are a lot higher.

All of Scotland Covered:
Including: Glasgow Edinburgh Aberdeen Dundee Dumfries Paisley East Kilbride Perth Livingston Giffnock Cumbernauld Hamilton Kirkcaldy Dunfermline Ayr Kinross Kilmarnock Inverness Greenock Inverclyde Port Glasgow Coatbridge North Lanarkshire Glenrothes Fife Airdrie Falkirk Stirling Rutherglen Dumfries Galloway Motherwell Wishaw Clydebank West Dunbartonshire Bearsden East Dunbartonshire Cambuslang Newton Mearns East Renfrewshire Bishopbriggs Musselburgh East Lothian Arbroath Angus Polmont Elgin Renfrew Renfrewshire Alloa Bellshill Clackmannanshire Blantyre Dumbarton West Dunbartonshire Kirkintilloch Clarkston East Renfrewshire Bathgate West Lothian Stenhousemuir Falkirk Peterhead Aberdeenshire Barrhead Grangemouth Falkirk St Andrews Kilwinning Ayrshire Viewpark Buckhaven Penicuik Midlothian Stranraer Johnstone Erskine Larkhall Moray