Convicted Driver
Ireland's penalty points system gets shake up
Fri, 27 Jan 2006
Lorry and bus drivers who get caught in the outside lane on motorways could face having three penalty points added to their licences under new proposals from Ireland's transport minister.
Martin Cullen yesterday announced a shake up of Ireland's penalty points system, whereby drivers are likely to suffer from increased fines and penalty point allocations if they are caught speeding or committing other driving offences.
Truck or bus drivers have come under particular fire; a fact which may lead to increased demand for convicted driver insurance policies if more are caught driving illegally in the fast lane.
Mr Cullen told the Transport News Network: "Today's announcement, by substantially increasing the amount of penalty point offences, will highlight the downsides attached to dangerous and irresponsible driving.
"This extension can have a positive impact on road safety. However, that impact will be given maximum potency when the new points are fully enforced."
Mr Cullen's announcement follows a barrage of criticism from opposition members who claim that the minister has failed to implement elements of the government's road safety programme which were set out some time ago.
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