This Case Took Place at Chesterfield Magistrates
To keep our client’s identity confidential, they will be referred to as ‘’Helen’’ for this case study.
Helen instructed us after she was stopped by police and charged with having illegal tyre tread. Helen explained to us, she was given an advisory at her routine MOT in regards to her tyres and had booked in for a tyre change with her local garage. Unfortunately, Helen contracted Covid soon after and had to rearrange this appointment for a later date. A day before Helens rescheduled date, she was charged with the offence.
By the time Helen instructed us she had already entered a plea of NOT GUILTY at her first appearance, so we began preparing for her case management hearing. A case management hearing is essentially a pre-trial hearing, which allows both parties (defence and prosecution) to set out and diarise their arguments ready for a full trial hearing to take place. In order to substantiate Helen’s plea, we explained the importance of evidencing that she was only informed of the tyre tread as an advisory and the state of the tyres was not illegal. We also advised Helen to obtain evidence of her Covid 19 diagnosis and booking confirmations of both her past & upcoming garage appointment. This would substantiate her version of her events and show the court she was proactively taking steps to resolve the issue.
Shortly after setting out our case at the case management hearing, we were preparing for Helen’s trial when we received a notification from the CPS. The CPS informed us they were discontinuing Helen’s case! This was a result of the CPS determining there was not enough evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction.
Following confirmation from the CPS that Helens case was being discontinued, we worked quickly to request Helen be awarded a Defendant Cost Order. A Defendant Cost Order (DCO), would enable Helen to be able to recover a percentage of the legal fees she has incurred from the National Taxation Office, pursuant to S.16 of Prosecution of Offences Act 1985. Our Request was granted and Helen was successfully awarded a Defendant Cost Order. We then completed this order in its entirety and send it off to be processed enabling Helen to be reimbursed at the earliest opportunity. We will always obtain a Defendant Cost Order for our clients where possible and be on hand to provide assistance and advice.
This was a great result for Helen and she was very complimentary of the how we conducted the handling of her case from the start to assisting her with re-cooping her legal fees. To discuss illegal tyre tread charges or defendant cost orders further, please call one of our motoring specialists on 0330 912 2124.