A guide to the Road Traffic Act 1991.

More than 5000 people are killed and 30,000 injured on our roads each year. In 1985 Dr Peter North chaired a review group who’s aim was to reduce these casualties. Their final report made 137 recommendations and some of these have now been included in the Road Traffic Act of 1991 which expands on the 1988 Act.

Offences:

Under the 1988 Act ‘Death by reckless driving’ stood alone as the most serious charge that could be brought against a driver when a fatality occurred.

The 1991 Act has redressed the situation.

Sections 1 and 2 now look like this:

sec 1. A person who causes the death of another person by driving a mechanically propelled vehicle dangerously on a road or other public place is guilty of an offence.

sec 2. A person who drives a mechanically propelled vehicle dangerously on a road or other public place is guilty of an offence.

There are 3 main points that need to be proved:

what is a mechanically propelled vehicle
what is dangerous
what is a road or public place

A motor vehicle was previously described as a mechanically propelled vehicle designed or adapted for use on the road. There is no definition of a mechanically propelled vehicle in the 91 Act so the old definition is used in the new Act. Such machinery as dumper trucks or scrambler motorcycles, go karts etc. now come within the 1991 Act as they are clearly mechanically propelled.

Dangerous is defined within the Act: ‘the way he drives falls far below what would be expected of a competent and careful driver’, and ‘it would be obvious to a competent driver that driving in that way would be dangerous’.Danger is referred to as causing injury to any person or serious damage to property. The Act goes further in that it says it is also dangerous if the vehicle condition can constitute a danger; ‘a person is to be regarded as driving dangerously if it is obvious to a competent and careful driver that driving the vehicle in its current state would be dangerous’ and that ‘regard may be had to anything attached to or carried on or in it and to the manner in which it is attached or carried’.

A public place is that to which the public has access whether on payment or otherwise. ‘Road’ has not been redefined but the ‘public place’ aspect brings into the realms of the Act such places as car parks.

A finding of not guilty to a charge under section 1 ‘death by dangerous driving’ does not prevent the court convicting for a lesser offence of section 2 ‘dangerous driving’ or section 3 ‘careless and inconsiderate driving’. Section 1 does however carry a maximum penalty of 5 years imprisonment and is therefore a serious arrestable offence.

Careless and inconsiderate driving.

The Act says ‘If a person drives a mechanically propelled vehicle on a road or other public place without due care and attention or without reasonable consideration for other persons using the road or place, he is guilty of an offence’.

The old section 3 offence has only been changed in as much as we are again dealing with a mechanically propelled vehicle and its use in public places as well as roads. The condition of the vehicle can also be a careless act, but construction and use offences would probably be more appropriate unless the vehicle were involved in a collision.

Drink & Drugs.

Section 3A(1) states: ‘If a person causes the death of another person by driving a mechanically propelled vehicle on a road or other public place without due care and attention or without reasonable consideration for other persons using the road or other place, AND

he is at the time when he is driving, unfit through drink or drugs, OR

he has consumed so much alcohol that the proportion in his breath, blood or urine at the time exceeds the prescribed limit, OR

he is within 18 hours after that time, required to provide a specimen in pursuance of section 7 of this Act, but without reasonable excuse fails to provide it,

he is guilty of an offence.

Each part of these sections is linked. It is necessary to have driven without due care and attention or reasonable consideration AND to be unfit through drink or drugs, section 3A(1)(a), or have consumed so much alcohol that the proportion in his breath, blood or urine at that time exceeds the prescribed limit, section 3A(1)(b).

There is also a ‘within 18 hours’ requirement with regard to failure to provide a specimen. The driver must be taken to a police station in order that the requirement to provide a sample of blood, breath or urine can be made. The on street sample is only a screening sample and does not fall within this Act. If it is not possible to get the offending driver to a police station the requirement cannot be made.

The aim of this part of the Act is to close a gap in the previous legislation that was allowing driver’s who had consumed too much alcohol or were drugged, to claim this caused the accident and thereby escape the full force of the law. Often a conviction for drunk driving did not reflect the general publics opinion of the seriousness of the accident circumstances. This may also have been reflected in a settlement awarded in a civil claim resulting from the accident in the percentage achieved.

This offence carries the same penalty as ‘causing death by dangerous driving’ and is therefore a serious arrestable offence.

Causing danger to road users.

A new offence created by this Act is covered in section 22A. It can be useful in claiming against an individual who’s actions cause injury to others. It states:

a person is guilty of an offence if he intentionally and without lawful authority or reasonable cause,causes anything to be on or over a road, or
interferes with a motor vehicle, trailer or cycle, or
interferes (directly or indirectly) with traffic equipment.
in such circumstances that it would be obvious to a reasonable person that to do so would be dangerous.

This danger must be to persons or property on or near a road. The offence carries a maximum sentence of 7 years imprisonment and is therefore an arrestable offence.

Cycling.

Reckless cycling has been replaced with an offence of dangerous cycling and as with the other offences dangerous has the same meaning, however this offence is only committed on a road. No mention has been made of public places. The Court may at its discretion reduce the offence to one of careless cycling, these offences are summary.

The Act has also introduced new offences or revamped older offences in the areas of:

construction and use of motor vehicles,
vehicle examiner’s,
matters arising at magistrates courts, penalties, and other provisions,
driving licence offences, and
the identification of drivers.

As none of these areas are directly relevant to civil claims you are left to seek advice on these matters should they arise.