UK penalty point hotspots revealed
Analysis of figures shows one in 10 Halifax drivers has points on their licence, while 11,000 motorists have over 12 points nationally
Drivers in Halifax have more penalty points on their licences than any other area in the country, an analysis of Driver and Vehicle Licencing Agency (DVLA) data has revealed. Some 9.62 per cent of drivers from the West Yorkshire town have at least one point on their licence, compared to the national average of just 6.65 per cent.
In fact, the top three towns and cities for penalty points are all in the north of England, and West Yorkshire in particular. Halifax is followed by Bradford, where 9.46 per cent of drivers have points, and Huddersfield (9.04 per cent).
• One in five drivers admit taking penalty points for someone else
In contrast to those figures, Canterbury in Kent has the lowest proportion of endorsed drivers, as just 3.72 per cent of the Kent town’s motorists have points. A total of 2,711,493 out of the UK’s 40.7 million drivers have points on their licence.
Top 10 postcodes with the highest number of drivers with penalty points
|
Postcode
|
Number of Penalty Point Holders
|
Number of licenced drivers
|
Share of drivers with penalty points
|
|
Halifax (HX)
|
10,758
|
111,820
|
9.62%
|
|
Bradford (BD)
|
34,455
|
364,162
|
9.46%
|
|
Huddersfield (HD)
|
16,593
|
183,465
|
9.04%
|
|
Bristol (BS)
|
61,761
|
719,724
|
8.58%
|
|
Doncaster (DN)
|
44,786
|
524,470
|
8.54%
|
|
Wakefield (WF)
|
29,403
|
350,953
|
8.38%
|
|
Leeds (LS)
|
41,823
|
504,336
|
8.29%
|
|
Luton (LU)
|
20,137
|
247,286
|
8.14%
|
|
Slough (SL)
|
24,734
|
307,502
|
8.04%
|
|
Harrogate (HG)
|
8,785
|
109,682
|
8.01%
|
The DVLA data, analysed by Vantage Leasing, also reveals there are more than 11,000 drivers in the UK with at least 12 penalty points on their licence, including a 41-year-old from East Sussex with 60 points, and a 25-year-old female driver in Nottinghamshire with 48 points. Over 2,000 drivers have at least 15 points on their licence.
• Road workers facing 300 dangerous incidents per week
The DVSA highlights that not all these drivers will be “actively driving”, and some will have lost their licences. Nonetheless, magistrates can allow drivers with 12 or more points keep their licence due to “exceptional circumstances”, which can include exceptional financial hardship to the motorist.
London, unsurprisingly, is home to the most 12-point-plus licence holders, at 969, while 393 drivers in the UK’s second-largest city, Birmingham, having 12 points or more.
Top 10 postcodes with the highest number of drivers with 12 or more penalty points
|
Postcode
|
Drivers with 12 or more penalty points
|
|
London (includes London postcodes)
|
969
|
|
Birmingham (B)
|
393
|
|
Peterborough (PE)
|
265
|
|
Nottingham (NG)
|
264
|
|
Liverpool (L)
|
247
|
|
Leeds (LS)
|
231
|
|
Bradford (BD)
|
218
|
|
Manchester (M)
|
218
|
|
Doncaster (DN)
|
207
|
|
Cardiff (CF)
|
204
|
Rob Walker, managing director of car finance firm Vantage Leasing, called the number of drivers with 12 or more points on their licence “worrying”, and added: “Interestingly, the top three areas of with the highest number of points holders are very close to one another.”
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