Few places in Scotland punish the loss of a licence as heavily as Perthshire. Outside Perth itself the county is villages, farms and long single-carriageway roads, and public transport between them is thin to non-existent. A disqualification does not simply make life inconvenient here; it can end a job, a business or the ability to care for a relative twenty miles away. Charles Ferguson Solicitors defend motoring charges across Perth and Kinross from our Edinburgh office at 14 Albany Street, EH1 3QB. Whether the charge came from a roadside stop on the A85 or an average speed camera on the A9, it deserves proper scrutiny before you plead.
Perth Sheriff Court — Road Traffic Cases
Motoring prosecutions arising in Perth and Kinross are heard at Perth Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court, Sheriff Court House, Tay Street, Perth PH2 8NL, in the Sheriffdom of Tayside, Central and Fife. The Justice of the Peace Court handles the bulk of routine summary motoring business — speeding, careless driving, insurance and licence offences — while drink driving, dangerous driving and cases taken on indictment call before a sheriff. Where a collision has resulted in a death, the charge of causing death by dangerous driving is prosecuted in the High Court of Justiciary. We appear in each of these courts.
Motoring Offences We Defend in Perth
Drink Driving and Drug Driving — Scotland's limit of 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood is the lowest in the United Kingdom, and a driver well under the English limit can still be convicted here. We scrutinise Intoximeter calibration and maintenance, station procedure, and whether the hip flask defence applies. Dangerous Driving — conviction brings at least a 12-month disqualification and a compulsory extended retest; the distinction between dangerous and careless driving is often the whole argument. Careless Driving — frequently a matter of degree, particularly in single-vehicle rural collisions. Speeding — the A9 is covered by average speed cameras along its length north of Dunblane, and the A90, A85, A93 and A94 are all regularly enforced; we check device approval and calibration and whether a Notice of Intended Prosecution was served within 14 days. Totting Up and Exceptional Hardship — at 12 penalty points the court must disqualify for at least 6 months unless exceptional hardship is proved on evidence. Driving Without Insurance — 6 to 8 penalty points or discretionary disqualification. Mobile Phone Offences — 6 penalty points. Driving While Disqualified — a charge carrying a genuine risk of custody.