National Safety Council
Penalty Points Website

About Penalty Points

Introduction

The penalty points system is designed to save lives and prevent injuries resulting from road crashes and collisions.

There are now 36 road traffic offences which attract penalty points.

Administration

From the 3rd April 2006, the way the penalty points system is administered will change significantly. Most notably, the Garda fixed charge payment system will be computerised and the Garda 'Pulse' system linked to the courts for the roll out of the extended penalty points system. This will undoubtedly enhance the efficiency of the system and hopefully its effectiveness in acting as a serious deterrent for drivers. Up to now, the system has been administered on a manual basis.

In addition, an extra 240 Gardaí will be joining the ranks of the Traffic Corps and an extra 28 Garda Traffic vehicles will be taking to the roads in 2006. This will increase the number of Gardaí in the Traffic Corps to 805 by year end 2006. The first wave of 60 new recruits began policing our roads at the end of March 2006.

Fixed Charges

garda car onboard cam image

31 of the 36 penalty point offences feature fixed charges of between €60 and €120. In the case of the remaining 5 offences, detection will lead directly to a court hearing.

In the case of all fixed charges, a person has 28 days from the date the fixed charge notice is issued to pay. Anyone who pays in the subsequent 28 days pays that amount plus a 50% increase. Court proceedings are initiated if a fixed charge is not paid within this 56-day period.

The option of paying a fixed charge provides for the incentive of accepting lower levels of penalty points. This reflects the overall objective of improving the behaviour of individual drivers before they reach the threshold level of 12 points which triggers automatic disqualification for 6 months.

The fixed charge system is also being extended to apply to a range of non-penalty point offences with effect from 3rd April. The fixed charge system, which currently applies to 3 offences is being extended to almost 60 offences and will replace the on-the-spot-fine system. The amounts of the fixed charges represent a significant increase on the levels of on the spot fines.

Link to list of 36 existing penalty point offences