Careless Driving Lawyer Melbourne

The prosecution must prove the following matters to be successful in a charge of careless driving:

1. That you are the person driving (identity).
2. That you drove on a highway
3. The vehicle was being driven carelessly
4. The prosecution must prove you were driving a motor vehicle in order to activate the more serious consequences contained in section 65(1) of the Road Safety Act. Otherwise a vehicle will attract less serious consequences contained in section 65(2) of the Act.

Careless
The test is whether the accused was “exercising a degree of care and attention that a reasonable and prudent driver would exercise in the circumstances.” (Simpson v Peat [1952] 2 QB 24). To be considered careless, drivers must be proven to have displayed negligent driving behaviour by failing to exercise due care or doing something that a reasonable driver would not do. Negligent driving offences apply regardless of whether drivers are aware of their behaviour.

• Acts of negligence that may contribute to careless driving include:
• Failing to keep a proper lookout for traffic signs, signals, and other vehicles
• Not maintaining a safe following distance behind another vehicle
• Distracted driving (such as driving while using a mobile phone)
• Failing to signal turning or stopping intentions
• Driving while fatigued

​The court has found that a common error of judgment involved in reverse parking by way of a slight bump into the car behind is not careless driving (Lajos v Samuels (1980) 26 SASR 514). If, however, you slightly move over the centre line of the road in preparation to turn and an oncoming vehicle collides with you, then it is likely to be careless (Burgess v Dunsmore (1974) 8 SASR 29).

Careless driving may include rear-ending a vehicle ahead; however, the circumstances must be considered. If the vehicle in front failed to signal before stopping sharply or braked suddenly without warning, the driver might not be considered careless. Whether your driving is considered careless will vary on a case-by-case basis.

Vehicle Impoundment
This offence is considered a “relevant offence” for the purpose of impoundment of your vehicle.

Penalty
This offence carries a maximum penalty of 12 penalty units and if it is a subsequent offence up to 25 penalty units.

If you are driving a vehicle rather than a motor vehicle 6 penalty units on a first offence and 12 penalty units if it is a subsequent offence.

There is no mandatory driver licence suspension or cancellation associated with this offence. A Magistrate has discretion to suspend your licence but strong submissions to the court and the right circumstances will make that less likely.

​Negligently Causing Serious Injury
Careless driving offences can lead to cases of negligently causing serious injury, where the victim is seriously injured but not killed. Careless driving and negligently causing serious injury both require the court to prove that you did not exercise a reasonable level of care while driving.

The offence of negligently causing serious injury has a maximum penalty of up to 10 years imprisonment.

Possible defences for negligently causing serious injury charges include proving the following:

• You did not owe a duty of care
• You did not cause serious injury to the victim, or were not the cause of the serious injury
• You were not negligent
• You were under duress or were in a state of emergency

The court carefully considers the circumstances for each case, making it crucial for you to seek the expertise of a traffic offence lawyer specialising in careless driving offences. To understand your legal options, get in touch with Christopher Sheen for a consultation.