Major change for drivers hit with demerit points
NSW Premier Chris Minns says his government is moving away from a 'revenue raising' approach.
Nearly two million drivers will be able to shed demerit points sooner than expected as the NSW state government makes good on an election promise to reward safe motorists.
Drivers who have incurred demerit points for infringements such as speeding will see a demerit point wiped from their record if they go 12 months without racking up any more fines.
It normally takes three years for a demerit point to be expunged but the change, being rolled out in a new trial, cuts that time down to just one year. It was initially intended to commence next month but has been fast tracked to kick in retroactively from January 17 this year, when the policy was announced.
Transport for NSW says it will take a "snapshot" of the demerit point register as it stood at the beginning of the year to determine all unrestricted and professional licence holders with active demerit points recorded against them.
The first round of points will begin to be deducted from mid-April 2024 – with the finalisation process expected to take about three months.
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However there are some exceptions with learner and provisional licence holders not included in the trial. According to NSW Premier Chris Minns, about 1.7m drivers are eligible.
In NSW if you accrue 13 demerit points on a standard unrestricted licence, your driving privileges will be suspended, making it a criminal offence to get behind the wheel. Demerit points are 'active' on your record for three years from the date of the given offence.
Premier says trial is about safety, eschewing 'revenue raising'
Premier Chris Minns said motorists can see one point removed from their record after 12 good months, which could give some trouble drivers a little more breathing room.
"Reducing the road toll and rewarding safe driving across the state is the aim of this trial and we hope it gives drivers that little bit of extra incentive to achieve a spotless record," he said.
Mr Minns said "for a long time .... the focus in relation to demerit points was about revenue raising" but the new trial puts the focus back on road safety.
"We're not saying every point will be returned, and we’re certainly not saying that drivers that are chronically racking up points will be able to be eligible to have all their points returned," he cautioned.
"But one point back, particularly if you’re on the precipice of losing your license is a big incentive to do the right thing.
"Our message couldn’t be clearer: drive safely and you’ll get a point scrubbed from your licence."
NSW taking new approach to road safety
Earlier this year, the new Labor government also reinstated a rule that means all mobile speed camera vehicles in NSW are now equipped to carry portable warning signs that must be displayed to alert passing motorists. The policy reversed the Perrottet government's decision to remove the signs back in 2020.
The new Minister for Roads, John Graham, also extolled the new approach by the government when it comes to road safety and demerit points claiming that under the previous government, there were almost a million demerit points on the records of NSW drivers, "yet the road toll was rising".
"Drivers in NSW are very much used to the stick approach, so this demerit trial is an important carrot for them to maintain a clean record over a 12-month period to the benefit of all motorists, pedestrians, and communities," he said.
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