Tag Archivesdistrict court

RSA child seats

Child restraints in cars

The importance of appropriate child restraints in cars cannot be overstated. According to the Road Safety Authority, 262 children died on Irish roads between 1996 and 2012 and in  almost one third of those cases no child restraints or safety belts were used. A fixed charge notice or court summons for failing to use a […]

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Late payment of fixed charge penalties

As the District Courts reopened this month after the summer break there has been some good news for drivers who get fine notices for road traffic offences but fail to pay within the 56 days allowed. Since 1 June 2017, a third payment option has been introduced and while the amount of the fine doubles, […]

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Car Insurance

Driving without insurance can be catastrophic

A lot of factors are blamed for the dramatic increase in the cost of car insurance over the past two years and while some are questionable at best, there is no doubt that the increase in uninsured drivers is an issue. There is now a renewed focus on uninsured drivers and, combined with a recent […]

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Cars

With car insurance, read the small print

In recent years there appears to have been an increase in cancelled car insurance policies. The consequences of this can be severe, so it is more important than ever to make sure that you have complied with all your obligations when taking out insurance, and that you know the conditions of your insurance when you […]

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Driving Car Dangerously At Night Due To Drinking, Speeding Or Be

Court of Appeal overturns Irish language drink driving decision

We wrote last September about a High Court decision which found that drink driving prosecutions based on breath/alcohol tests produced by a breathalyser machine in the English language only were invalid. The High Court ruled that the law required test results to be produced in both English and Irish, with both language versions given to […]

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Young businesswoman driving car

A victory for motorists over mindless bureaucracy

The Garda fixed charge processing office should no longer refuse to accept fixed charge payments due to minor omissions on fixed charge notices. A High Court ruling has found that the Gardaí are not entitled to refuse to process payments in such cases, which is good news for motorists who could otherwise face conviction, higher […]

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Decorative Scales Of Justice In The Courtroom

Paying court fines by instalment

At long last it is possible to pay court fines by instalment, through An Post branches or online. This is a significant improvement on previous rules which only allowed payment in one lump sum, but the payment rules are complicated and it is important to check the details of the fine notice so that the […]

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NCW Court

Future of Newcastle West Courthouse secure

Over 77 courthouses across the country have closed since the economic crash began in 2008. The closures have particularly hit rural areas, and County Limerick did not escape. Twenty years ago there were monthly court sittings in all towns and most villages in County Limerick, in places like Askeaton, Rathkeale, Shanagolden, Dromcollogher and Glin. Many […]

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Can you be fined when your car was speeding but you weren’t driving?

Most speeding offences are dealt with by fixed charge notices, a form of speeding ticket you get in the post. If you fill out the form and send a the fine to the Garda fixed charge processing office you receive 3 penalty points on your licence. If you do not, you will have to go […]

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Cars

5 tips for dealing with driving offences

Some driving offences, like drink driving, result in automatic disqualification from driving and people are generally aware of the risks involved. However, penalty points disqualification is now an increasing threat to drivers, particularly as the points for many offences has increased while the the threshold for disqualification has not. If you get 12 penalty points […]

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