Costs

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Our specialist road traffic defence team are dedicated to providing clear and transparent pricing for motoring offences cases.  We’ll help you match the best option to your circumstances.

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There are a range of summary only offences, for example:

• Driving a vehicle whilst over the prescribed limit for alcohol

• Failing to provide a specimen

• Failing to stop after an accident

• Careless driving

• Speeding

• Driving without insurance

• Driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence

 

For offences such as these, our hourly rates are: -

 

Directors/partners and legal executives with more than 8 years’ experience

£300.00

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Associate Solicitors and legal executives with more than 4 years

experience

£250.00

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Other solicitors or legal executives and fee earners of equivalent

experience

£200.00

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Trainee Solicitors, paralegals and other fee earners

£156.00

 

In some cases, we will be able to offer a fixed fee, but this is subject to an initial assessment to establish that the case is suitable which will depend upon, for example, the complexity of the case and the nature of your plea.

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If your case is suitable for a fixed fee, our fixed fees for summary only motoring offences are as follows:

 

Detailed initial consultation (30 minutes) – £120 (incl. VAT)

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Your initial conversation with us is always free but, we can offer a more detailed consultation with one of our specialist solicitors. These consultations can be particularly beneficial if you have received multiple offences or are unclear what to do with your Single Justice Procedure Notice or Notice of Intended Prosecution. Alternatively, you may be looking for some initial advice to challenge the offence and avoid attending court.

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We can advise either at our offices or over the telephone. In order for you to get the most from your consultation, it may be necessary to , post, or email certain documents to us ahead of the consultation. If you decide to instruct us following the consultation, the initial fee will be deducted from our final bill.

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Our fee includes:

• Attending to you over the phone/in person

• Reviewing documentation received by you

• Advising you on your options

 

Our fee does not include:

• Written representations or advocacy

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Letter of representations/mitigation – £500.00 (incl. VAT)

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In some circumstances, especially more minor motoring offences, there might be the possibility of avoiding your offence going to court. This can be achieved through a letter of representations written by us on your behalf to dissuade the police from issuing court proceedings. It may also be appropriate to write a strong detailed letter in mitigation to the court for you to dispense with or as an alternative to an attendance.

 

Stages of process:

• Initial consultation and advice by phone/person

• Review of charge summons and evidence, including providing advice

• Further consultation by phone/in person regarding mitigation

• Draft letter of mitigation

 

Our fee includes:

• Attending to you over the phone/in person

• Minimum of 1 hour preparation

• Considering evidence

• Providing advice in relation to plea and likely sentence

• Written representation including advising on a decision

 

Our fee does not include:

• Attendance at court

• Third party or experts fees

• Enquiries of witnesses/third parties

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Guilty pleas (1 -3 offences) – £1250 (incl. VAT) – £1800 (incl. VAT)*

If you accept you have committed a motoring offence, entering a guilty plea and putting forward a strong plea mitigation can sometimes give you the best outcome by minimising the penalty that could be imposed.

 

Stages of process:

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The key stages of your matter are based on the presumption that you have entered a guilty plea and have a date for your hearing.

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• Initial consultation and advice by phone/person

• Review of charge summons and evidence, including providing advice

• Further consultation by phone/in person regarding defence, explaining the court procedure, and the sentencing options available to the court

• Conduct any further preparatory work, obtain further instructions from you if necessary and answer any follow up queries you have

• We cannot provide a timescale of when your hearing will take place, as this depends on the court listing for that court

• We will attend court on the day/or instruct a Barrister (if it is more cost effective) and meet with you before going before the court. We anticipate being at court for half a day

• We will discuss the outcome after the court hearing with you. If advice is required on appeal, this will carry an additional cost

 

Our fee includes:

• Attending to you over the phone/in person

• Minimum of 2 hours’ attendance/preparation:

• Considering evidence

• Providing advice in relation to plea and likely sentence

• Full representation up to and including the sentencing hearing

• Providing assistance in obtaining evidence and mitigating any penalties that the Court may impose

• Where appropriate, advice on whether an exceptional hardship or special reasons argument should be made

• Barristers fees

• Representation at single hearing for no more than half a day

• Car parking/mileage or other travelling expenses

 

Our fee does not include:

• Instruction of any expert witnesses

• Taking statements from any witnesses

• Advice and assistance in relation to a special reasons hearing

• Advice or assistance in relation to any appeal

• Representation in person at future hearings

• Third party or experts fees

• If the court of its own volition sees fit to adjourn your hearing to another date, requiring us to reschedule date of attendance

• Any work following the conclusion of your final hearing or appeal which would incur additional fees

• Any fine imposed by the court, surcharge or order for costs made in favour of prosecution

 

The fees for our service can vary depending on a number of factors including:

• Additional time required

• Contacting witnesses/third parties

• Liaising with courts

• If the trial runs over half a day

• The location of the trial

• Number of witnesses involved

• Number of offences committed

 

We do not expect to do any work outside the terms of any fixed price quoted, however we will notify you if this changes and discuss with you how the additional work may be charged.

 

Not guilty plea (1 offence) – £2000 (incl. VAT) – £4000 (incl. VAT)*

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If you decide upon our advice to enter a not guilty plea/s at the Magistrates court we will work with you to prepare a thorough case and represent you at the Magistrates’ court trial.

 

Stages of process:

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The key stages of your matter are based on the presumption that you have entered a not guilty plea and have a date for your hearing.

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• Initial consultation and advice by phone/person

• Review of charge summons and evidence and provide advice

• Further consultation by phone/in person regarding defence, explaining the court procedure so you know what to expect at your hearing, and the sentencing options available to the court

• Conduct any further preparatory work, obtain further instructions from you if necessary and answer any follow up queries you have

• We cannot provide a timescale of when your hearing will take place, as this depends on the court listing

• We will attend court (or a Barrister, if more cost effective) on the day and meet with you before going before the court. We anticipate being at court for half a day

• We will discuss the outcome after the court hearing with you. If advice is required on appeal, this will carry an additional cost

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Our fee includes:

• Attending to you over the phone/in person

• A full assessment of the evidence including advice on likely sentence/prospects of success

• Minimum of 4 hours’ attendance/preparation:

• Considering evidence

• Providing advice in relation to plea and likely sentence

• Written plea and written case management

• Full representation up to and including the trial hearing for no more than a day.

• Providing assistance in obtaining character reference evidence and mitigating any penalties that the Court may impose

• Where appropriate, advice on whether an exceptional hardship or special reasons argument should be made

• Barristers fees

• Car parking/mileage or other travelling expenses

 

Our fee does not include:

• Instruction of any expert witnesses

• Taking statements from any witnesses

• Advice and assistance in relation to a special reasons hearing

• Advice or assistance in relation to any appeal

• Representation in person at any case management hearings

• Third party or experts fees

• If the court of its own volition sees fit to adjourn your trial to another date, requiring us to reschedule date of attendance

• Any work following the conclusion of your final hearing or appeal which would incur additional fees

• Costs in relation to transfer proceedings

• Any fine imposed by the court, surcharge or order for costs made in favour of prosecution

 

The fees for our service can vary depending on a number of factors including:

• Additional time required

• Contacting witnesses/third parties

• Liaising with courts

• If the trial runs over half a day

• The location of the trial

• Number of witnesses involved

• Number of offences committed

 

At this stage we do not expect to do any work outside the terms of any fixed price quoted, however we will notify you if this changes and discuss with you how the additional work may be charged.

 

*If successful and acquitted or proceedings are discontinued by the prosecution you may be entitled to obtain a defence costs order

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Special Reasons Argument – £1500 (incl. VAT) – £2400 (incl. VAT)*

 

Although you might accept that you are guilty of committing a motoring offence, you could have reasons for avoiding a penalty-known as a special reasons argument.

 

Stages of process:

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• Initial consultation and advice by phone/person

• Review of charge summons and evidence, including providing advice

• Further consultation by phone/in person regarding defence, explaining the court procedure so you know what to expect at your hearing, and the sentencing options available to the court

• We will conduct any further preparatory work, obtain further instructions from you if necessary and answer any follow up queries you have

• We cannot provide a timescale of when your hearing will take place, as this depends on the court listing

• We will attend court on the day and meet with you before going before the court. We anticipate being at court for half a day

• We will discuss the outcome after the court hearing with you. If advice is required on appeal, this will carry an additional cost

 

Our fee includes:

• Attending to you over the phone/in person

• A full assessment of the evidence including advice on likely sentence/prospects of success

• Minimum of 2 hours’ attendance/preparation :

• Considering evidence

• Providing advice in relation to plea and likely sentence

• Full representation up to and including the sentencing hearing for no more than half a day

• Providing assistance in obtaining character reference evidence and mitigating any penalties that the Court may impose

• Written plea and written case management

• Barristers fees

• Car parking/mileage or other travelling expenses

 

Our fee does not include:

• Instruction of any expert witnesses

• Taking statements from any witnesses

• Advice or assistance in relation to any appeal

• Attendance at more than one hearing

• If the court of its own volition sees fit to adjourn your trial to another date, requiring us to reschedule date of attendance

• Any work following the conclusion of your final hearing or appeal which would incur additional fees

• Costs in relation to transfer proceedings

• Any fine imposed by the court, surcharge or order for costs made in favour of prosecution

 

At this stage we do not expect to do any work outside the terms of any fixed price quoted, however we will notify you if this changes and discuss with you how the additional work may be charged.

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What’s the average cost of a case?

 

The cost of your case will depend on a number of different factors including the type of offence, if you enter into a guilty plea or your case goes to Trial and the individual circumstances of your case. 

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(see table 1 at bottom of page)

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How long will my case take?

It will largely depend on the offence and if the case is a guilty plea or is going to trial.  The usual timescale for a motoring offence case from when we’re instructed is three to six months for a guilty plea and 6 -12 months for a not guilty plea.  We’re able to give a more accurate timescale on individual cases when we have more details.

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Are there any other costs involved?

To ensure the smooth running of your case we handle any additional necessary payments to third parties such as expert fees on your behalf.  These payments are called disbursements and will differ on a case by case basis. We’ll consult you about these costs in advance and they’ll be charged back to you at the end of your case

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There may be circumstances in which it would be more cost effective to instruct a barrister to represent you at the court hearing.  Equally you may simply prefer to be represented at court by a barrister.  The cost of a barrister will vary according to experience and expertise, but typically you could expect to pay between £350 and £2,000 + VAT if applicable.  If you wish to instruct Queen’s Counsel, the most senior type of barrister, then exceptionally their fees may be higher than this.

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If it is necessary to instruct an expert, such as a doctor or scientist, their fees will vary depending on the work they have to do and their expertise.  It is hard to estimate what their fees might be but the range could be from £100 - £3,000 + VAT if applicable.  In exceptional circumstances, these fees may exceed these figures.  We will agree their fees with you before they are engaged.

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Please contact a member Hayley Betteridge to discuss how we can assist and what the likely costs in your case will be. 

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Table 1