Exceptional Hardship Totting Up Ban: 12 Points on your Driving Licence
Exceptional Hardship – Avoid a Totting Up Ban
Our Motorist Defence Team have an outstanding success rate of helping drivers keep their licence or reduce a ban with the Exceptional Hardship argument. If you have 12 points on your licence and need some advice we are here to help.
Call our Transport Team Email our Transport TeamWhat is Exceptional Hardship?
Exceptional hardship can usually be argued on the grounds of either emotional hardship or financial hardship. In order to successfully argue a case of exceptional hardship you will need to put forward a compelling and convincing argument that proves a ban would cause you more difficulties than would normally be suffered by other motorists in your position. For example, it is not enough to argue that losing your driving licence would cause an inconvenience and loss of job in itself isn’t always accepted to be exceptional hardship.
What is a totting up ban?
If you have accrued 12 or more penalty points for driving offences then you automatically face a six month driving ban under totting up rules. Understandably this could have a detrimental impact on your employment, finances and family. However, under an argument of exceptional hardship you may be able to avoid a disqualification.
Need help with 12 points on your licence? Call our exceptional hardship experts – 03456 465 465
It is important to note that whilst the court might not disqualify you, your licence will still be endorsed with penalty points which will remain live for three years, for the purposes of future court proceedings. This means that if you face disqualification again within three years, you may not be able to put forward the same argument to avoid disqualification again.
12 Points on licence – How long could you be banned for?
If you do accumulate 12 points or more within a three year period, you will be disqualified for a minumum of at least 6 months under the totting up rules unless you successfully argue exceptional hardship. However, the length of ban can increase depending on your driving record:
- 6 months – standard minimum ban as required by the courts as soon as you reach 12 points on your licence
- 1 year – You will receive a 12 month ban for accumulating 12 points if you have had a previous disqualification of at least 56 days in the last 36 months
- 2 years – You will receive a two year ban if you have had more than one disqualification of at least 56 days in the last 36 months
Our motorist defence team are experts in advancing exceptional hardship arguments and can help you receive a shortened ban or even avoid disqualification altogether.
97% success rate in helping clients to avoid a totting up ban through exceptional hardship arguments – check our Google Reviews
Arguing exceptional hardship is not easy, and seeking legal advice is often recommended as there is a great deal of preparation required in order to put forward a satisfactory argument. At Rothera Bray we have a wealth of experience in preparing and putting forward successful exceptional hardship arguments for our clients, ensuring that they can keep their licence.
Why use Rothera Bray for Exceptional Hardship arguments?
We will help you in gathering materials to support your argument and assess all relevant information relating to your personal and professional circumstances to put before the court.
We will use our previous experience to collate the necessary documentation and evidence to improve your chances of achieving a positive outcome.
You will be assigned a member of the motoring team who specialises in exceptional hardship arguments and will guide you through the process from start to finish.
We regularly appear at Magistrates’ Courts throughout the UK to present exceptional hardship arguments.
We can offer Skype and Zoom meetings and represent clients across the UK.
We will work closely with you to ascertain your personal circumstances so we can provide a tailored exceptional hardship argument and legal advice that is specific to you.
We have a site dedicated solely to Motoring Offences whilst still using the same expert Motoring solicitors, so if you’re looking for more information about types of offences, our team, where we operate or case studies from some of our previous clients, then head over to Keep Me On The Road. If you feel you’ve read enough and want to speak to one of the country’s leading Transport Law teams, call now on 03456 465 465.
We’re award winning and top rated in Google, have a look at our Google reviews for your own piece of mind.
We have a range of fixed-fee services: please see visit our specialist motorist website for more information:
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“Our experienced and specialist team represent clients nationally on a day-to-day basis”
Anton Balkitis
Head of Transport Law
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Posted 10 November 2025
I would like to send a big shout out to Anton Balkitis at Rothera Bray. Appearing at Court for me and handling the judges, knowing what to say and how to say it, is not something I could have done on my own. It felt good to have someone on my side that really knew their stuff. I highly recommend for anyone who needs a helping hand and wants the best outcome at Court.
Ryan
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Posted 10 November 2025
My Solicitor (Georgina) meticulously reviewed all my details in the case, explained the process clearly and prepared a strong defence. I felt supported throughout the entire process and was very grateful for their guidance. I would highly recommend them to anyone needing legal assistance.
Anonymous
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Posted 20 October 2025
I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to Anton Balkitis and the team at Rothera Bray for their support in preparing my case so effectively and Anton's strong representation at court which achieved an outcome beyond expectations. An extremely positive experience and fantastic result, many thanks. Regards, John.
John D
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Posted 13 October 2025
A very positive experience from start to finish. Georgina was very helpful and gave great communication and advice. We were pleased with every aspect of the service we received.
Sarah B
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Posted 1 October 2025
I can only praise Rothera Bray as being a highly professional organisation, and the service I received from Anton Balkitis and Rebeca Large-Rodriguez was exceptional. Their advice was clear, they gave excellent support, and ultimately helped to secure a very favourable result for me, for all of which I’m extraordinarily grateful. I would thoroughly recommend Rothera Bray as offering great value for money.
Paul
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Posted 24 September 2025
I was represented by Georgina Power and Rothera Bray Solicitors. From start to finish Georgina was a pleasure to deal with, she helped me prepared, reassured me through and I got the outcome I wanted and exactly what Georgina said would happen. Couldn't recommend Rothera Bray enough, we've worked with them on multiple cases and there's a reason why!
Jakub
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Posted 17 September 2025
I had the pleasure of being represented by Georgina Power, her professionalism and extensive knowledge in road transport matters helped me prepare for and feel confident during my case. With Georgina's help I came away with a very positive result, I cant recommend Georgina and Rothera Bray solicitors highly enough. Very pleased.
Ryan O
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Posted 9 September 2025
I received a Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) stating that I was driving without due consideration to other road users... having contacted Rothera Bray I was advised by Georgina to complete the NIP & also enclose a letter disputing it for (specific) reasons. As a consequence I received a further letter from the police stating 'Due to an administrative error on the NIP regarding dates & time we are withdrawing the NIP & no further action would be taken'. Many Thanks to Georgina & the team & happy to recommend in future.
Ian W
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Posted 8 September 2025
I was caught speeding and and already on 9 points, so the consequences were 12 points and an automatic 6 month ban. Due to my job and family commitments this would have been devastating. I contacted Rothera Bray and spoke to their specialist Anton Balkitis who listened to the facts around the events and advised that I would have a good chance of pleading exceptional hardship and having no ban. Over the next 4 months I put together the statements with the help of Anton and Chelsey Sewell at Rothera. They were a great help and handled the full case including all liaison with the courts. I got a fine, three points and no ban, with a huge help from Rothera Bray, very professional and helped me out of a sticky situation...Thanks and keep up the good work!
S Singh
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Posted 26 August 2025
From the first phone call we had a couple of weeks ago through to the day of the case, you were a great help. Having already been contacted by a lawyer from another firm, your initial call meant I had absolutely no hesitation in agreeing to work with you and use your company over any other. You didn't promise that the outcome would necessarily go in our favour but made me feel like we would be in really good hands and that, if it were possible to get a good outcome, that we would have the best chance of achieving that working with you. You are exceptionally good at your job.
Chris C
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Posted 9 August 2025
Fantastic service from start to finish. Anton led my motoring case with great expertise, and Rebeca kept me informed and reassured throughout. I’m very grateful for their work and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend them.
Dan C
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Posted 6 August 2025
The absolute best decision I done was get in contact with ROTHERA Bray, Chelsey was incredible from the very start until the very end. I would highly recommend these guys 10/10. All questions answered and straight to the point. Top class service.
T Hale
Anton Balkitis
Partner & Head of Transport
Anton Balkitis leads the Transport Law team and is a nationally recognised Transport and Motoring Law specialist at Nottingham-based law firm Rothera Bray Solicitors.
Olivia Maginn
Barrister & Senior Associate
Olivia Maginn is a transport and motoring law specialist at our Lace Market, Nottingham office.
Georgina Power
Associate Solicitor
Georgina Power is an Associate Solicitor in Rothera Bray’s Transport team and is based at our Lace Market office in Nottingham city centre.
Chelsey Sewell
Managing Paralegal
Chelsey Sewell is a paralegal in Rothera Bray’s transport and motorist offence department and is based at our Nottingham Lace Market office in the city centre.
Rebeca Large-Rodriguez
Paralegal
Rebeca Large-Rodriguez is a Paralegal in Rothera Bray’s Transport and Motorist Offence department and is based at our Lace Market office.
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