Number of motorists with points on licence hits record high – is your region affected?

Yorkshire ranked top across the UK with 7.8 per cent of drivers in the region with penalty points.

Penalty points are a key indicator of a driver’s ability and behaviour, with points added to the licence if they commit an offence such as running a red light, speeding or using a mobile while driving.

Do you have a story you'd like to share? Get in touch by emailingmotoring@gbnews.uk

If a driver reaches 12 points on their licence then the court can impose an immediate driving ban for a minimum of six months.

However, the ban can be 12 months if the driver gets a second disqualification within three years.

If there is a third infringement within a three-year period, drivers could be banned for two years.

Drivers in South West Yorkshire came in second as having the most penalty points with roughly 6.30 per cent of all motorists having accumulated points.

Greg Wilson, CEO and car insurance expert at Quotezone.co.uk explained that penalty points are intended to stop motorists from driving dangerously.

The more serious the motoring offence, “the more points a driver will get,” the most common offences are speeding, driving under the influence and using a mobile phone while driving.

The Quotezone survey found that despite more drivers having points on their licence, 97 per cent of people felt they were good drivers.

A further 83 per cent of drivers said they were prepared to report others for their bad driving and dangerous acts.

Wilson added: “It only takes a moment to get distracted or lose concentration but that can’thappen behind the wheel, drivers need to be mindful of the dangers and wary of all other road users.

“Every conviction including a penalty point is also likely to increase car insurance premiums by five per cent for three points and 25 per cent for six points.”

Drivers in East Midlands came in third with 6.20 per cent of drivers having penalty points while, North East England and Scotland tied with six per cent respectively.

North West England and Wales both had 5.7 per cent of drivers with points within these areas while East of England, London, South East England and West Midlands came joint last with 5.6 per cent.

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:

• Driving law changes could see Britons require 'green card' to travel in Europe this summer
• Sadiq Khan to charge drivers £4 a day to use tunnels under plans to make journeys '20 minutes faster'
• Drivers could be slapped with £5,000 fine for chanting ‘It’s Coming Home’ in cars during Euros

If a driver receives a ban, they also are prevented from driving in Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man. There are currently 50 million people with a driving licence in Great Britain.