A drink driving conviction creates a criminal record as well as an endorsement on your driving record. These records serve different purposes and may remain relevant for different lengths of time.

The effect of a conviction depends on the drink driving offence, the sentence imposed and whether you need to disclose it to an employer, insurer, professional regulator or overseas authority.

In this guide, Hojol Uddin, Partner and Head of JMW’s Motoring Department, explains what a drink driving conviction means for your record, how long the information may remain visible and when a conviction becomes spent. Hojol has extensive experience across motoring offences and particular expertise in legally and evidentially complex drink driving, drug driving, dangerous driving and careless driving cases. He also advises on DVLA medical revocations and has successfully challenged drink driving cases in the High Court.

Is a Drink Driving Conviction a Criminal Record?

Drink driving is a criminal offence, so a person found guilty in the Magistrates’ Court receives a criminal conviction.

The penalties for criminal offences of this kind may include imprisonment, an unlimited fine and a driving disqualification. This applies even if the court does not impose a prison sentence. Driving or attempting to drive above the legal alcohol limit or while unfit through drink may result in up to six months’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine and a driving disqualification of at least 12 months. The minimum ban normally increases to three years following another relevant conviction within 10 years.

A drink driving conviction is therefore different from a parking charge or another civil penalty. Information about the conviction may be recorded on the Police National Computer, while the corresponding motoring conviction appears separately on the person’s driving record.

What Appears on Your Driving Record?

The driving record may show the endorsement code, penalty points and details of any driving ban. The code depends on the alleged offence for which the person was convicted.

Common drink driving codes include:

• DR10: Driving or attempting to drive with alcohol above the legal limit.
• DR20: Driving or attempting to drive while unfit through drink.
• DR30: Driving or attempting to drive and failing to provide a specimen for analysis.
• DR40: Being in charge of a vehicle with alcohol above the legal limit.
• DR50: Being in charge of a vehicle while unfit through drink.
• DR60: Failing to provide a specimen in circumstances involving being in charge of a vehicle.
• DR70: Failing to cooperate with a preliminary breath test.

A person may face a drink driving charge after alcohol is detected through a breath test, blood sample or urine specimen. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the blood alcohol limit is 80 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. Different limits apply in Scotland.

How Long Does a Drink Driving Conviction Stay on Your Driving Record?

How long a drink driving conviction stays on the driving record depends on the endorsement.

DR10, DR20 and DR30 endorsements generally remain on the record for 11 years from the date of conviction. Other drink-related endorsements may remain for four years. Endorsements remain on a driving record for either four or 11 years, depending on the driving offence.

The endorsement period can affect:

• Car insurance costs
• Employment involving driving
• Future sentencing
• The treatment of repeat offenders
• Applications for professional or commercial driving work

Although people often describe an endorsement as remaining “on the driving licence”, the information is now held electronically on the DVLA driving record.

Is a Driving Record the Same as a Criminal Record?

No, a driving record and criminal record contain related but distinct information. A driving record shows endorsements, penalty points and disqualifications. A criminal record records the conviction and sentence. The Police National Computer may continue to retain details after the conviction becomes spent.

A DBS check is different again. It discloses criminal record information according to the level of check, the rehabilitation period and the filtering rules.

This means a drink driving conviction may stop appearing on a basic DBS check while the endorsement remains visible on the driving record.

Does a Drink Driving Conviction Stay on Your Criminal Record Forever?

A drink driving conviction may remain recorded on the Police National Computer indefinitely. However, this does not mean that it must be disclosed in every situation for the rest of the person’s life.

It is important to distinguish between:

• The conviction remaining on a police record
• The conviction becoming spent
• The endorsement remaining on the driving record
• The conviction appearing on a DBS check
• A legal duty to disclose the conviction

Therefore, when asking how long a drink driving conviction stay on your criminal record, there is no single answer covering every purpose.

When Does a Drink Driving Conviction Become Spent?

A conviction becomes spent when its rehabilitation period ends. The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 allows many convictions to become spent after a defined period.

The rehabilitation period depends on the sentence imposed, rather than simply the name of the offence. A fine, community order, driving disqualification and custodial sentence may each have different rehabilitation periods. Where the court imposes more than one penalty, the longest applicable period will generally determine when the driving conviction becomes spent.

A driving disqualification becomes spent when the ban ends. However, another element of the sentence may remain unspent for longer.

For example, if the court imposes a driving ban and a fine, the conviction may remain unspent after the ban has ended because the rehabilitation period attached to the fine continues.

It is therefore not accurate to say that every drink driving conviction becomes spent after five years.

What Does a Spent Conviction Mean?

Once a conviction becomes spent, it normally does not need to be disclosed for most jobs and other ordinary purposes.

However, a spent conviction has not been deleted. It may still be relevant for certain regulated occupations, court proceedings, immigration matters and applications eligible for standard or enhanced DBS checks.

Where no statutory exception applies, an employer should not refuse employment or dismiss someone because of a spent conviction.

Reapplying for Your Driving Licence After a Drink Driving Conviction

You can usually apply for a new driving licence up to 56 days before your driving ban ends. This allows the DVLA time to process the application before the disqualification expires.

If the DVLA classifies you as a High Risk Offender, you can normally reapply up to 90 days before the end of the ban. You will need to complete a D27PH form and satisfy the DVLA’s medical requirements before it can issue a new licence.

You should not assume that you can begin driving as soon as the ban ends. Make sure the DVLA has approved your application and that you are legally entitled to drive before returning to the road.

Will Drink Driving Show on a DBS Check?

A drink driving conviction may appear on a DBS check, but the result depends on the type of check and whether the conviction is spent.

• A basic DBS check normally shows unspent convictions and conditional cautions. Once the rehabilitation period has ended, a spent drink driving conviction should not normally appear on a basic certificate.
• A standard DBS check may show spent and unspent convictions, subject to filtering rules.
• An enhanced DBS check contains the information available on a standard check and may also include relevant information held by local police.

DBS filtering removes certain older convictions from standard and enhanced certificates. For an adult conviction that did not result in a custodial sentence and is not for a specified offence, filtering may apply after 11 years, subject to the applicable rules.

A prison sentence can prevent a conviction from being filtered. The precise result therefore depends on the offence, sentence, age at conviction and time elapsed.

Can You Get a Job With a Drink Driving Conviction?

A drink driving conviction does not automatically prevent someone from obtaining employment.

The likely effect depends on:

• Whether driving is an essential part of the role
• Whether the conviction is spent
• The level of DBS check permitted
• Any professional reporting requirement
• The employer’s policies
• The circumstances of the driving offence

An employer may ask for a DVLA licence check code where the role involves driving. This can reveal current endorsements, penalty points and a driving disqualification, even where the criminal conviction has become spent.

A conviction may have a greater practical effect on professional drivers, delivery workers, sales representatives, engineers, carers and employees who use company vehicles. However, many people continue to work after a drink driving conviction.

Must You Disclose the Conviction to an Insurer?

You must answer an insurer’s questions accurately. The period for which an insurer asks about a driving conviction may not match the 11-year endorsement period. You should therefore read the wording carefully and disclose the motoring conviction where required.

Withholding relevant information may cause the insurer to cancel the policy, reject a claim or treat the cover as invalid. Car insurance costs may also increase significantly following a drink driving conviction.

Can the Conviction Affect Travel or Professional Work?

Some professional regulators require members to disclose criminal convictions. This may affect people working in healthcare, law, education, policing, financial services, accountancy and licensed transport.

Failing to report the conviction where disclosure is required may create a separate regulatory issue, even if the drink driving offence did not happen at work. The effect will depend on the regulator’s rules, the nature of the role and the circumstances of the offence.

A drink driving conviction may also affect overseas travel. Some countries ask about criminal convictions when considering visa or electronic travel authorisation applications, and certain destinations may refuse entry depending on the offence and sentence.

A conviction becoming spent under the law of England and Wales does not determine what another country may require. You should therefore check the current entry rules for your destination and answer all questions accurately.

Can a Drink Driving Conviction Be Removed?

A valid criminal conviction cannot usually be erased simply because time has passed.

However:

• A conviction may become spent.
• An older conviction may become filtered from a DBS check.
• An endorsement will be removed after the statutory retention period.
• Inaccurate information may be corrected.
• A conviction may be overturned through a successful appeal.

These are separate processes. A conviction becoming spent does not mean that every record of it has disappeared.

How Can JMW Help With a Drink Driving Accusation?

The specialist drink driving offence solicitors at JMW will mount a strong defence by examining the evidence surrounding the drink driving accusation.

We assess:

• Whether the prosecution can prove that you were driving, attempting to drive or in charge of a motor vehicle
• Whether the police followed the correct breath-testing procedure
• Whether the breath, blood or urine evidence is reliable
• Whether you had a reasonable excuse for failing to provide a specimen
• Whether special reasons may affect the driving disqualification
• Whether an appeal may be appropriate

Where a full defence is not available, we present focused mitigation and explain how the proposed sentence may affect your criminal record, driving licence and personal life.