Mum with a Driving Conviction? Here’s How to Cope…

Mum with a Driving Conviction? Here’s How to Cope…

Various driving offences can attract criminal convictions. These violations can range from driving after a couple of drinks to simply neglecting to wear a seatbelt while on the road or using you’re phone while you’re driving. However, if you are a mother who has recently been convicted of a driving offence, it’s not just the law that may punish you.

That’s because the stigma and shame can be hard to shake off, only adding to the pressure that you likely already feel in your busy life as a mother. So what specific challenges might you face, and how can you overcome them?

How to Cope with Life after a Driving Conviction

• Let’s get the legal aspect out of the way first

Strictly speaking, not all driving offences actually result in convictions. Some instances of careless driving, for example, can be largely forgotten once the offender has paid a speeding ticket or fixed penalty for the crime.

In some cases, though, the matter will go to court, whether that is a magistrates’ court or Crown Court. Perhaps you pleaded guilty there, or the court found you guilty. Either way, in this situation, you will now have a conviction, with the various practical, financial and emotional implications this may bring.

• Will I be able to get back onto the road after a driving conviction?

There’s some good news for many of those who may have been convicted of a motoring offence. First of all, there’s the fact that if your conviction brought you a prison sentence of fewer than 30 months, it’s just a waiting game before that conviction is “spent”. After that, you won’t have to disclose it to many employers who might have otherwise given you a wide berth.

But of course, it’s not just a new job that you might need to secure. You may also require reliable means of getting to your new workplace so that you can provide for your family – which is why, once any driving ban on your record has expired, you might be itching to get back behind the wheel.

However, actually driving your vehicle would be a legal non-starter without insurance, which might now be outside your budget. That’s due to insurers usually hiking premiums for convicted drivers, as they are considered to be at higher risk of making a claim.

If your conviction is as yet unspent, you must always declare it to insurers – otherwise, your policy could be invalidated. Yes, it’s almost certain that your premiums will go up compared to if you had never been convicted so be prepared for this when you’re looking for convicted car insurance.

However, seeking a competitive quote for convicted driver insurance through a dedicated specialist firm like MoneyBeach could help to lessen the financial hit.

• • How you can minimise the stigma of a traffic violation

When you are trying to raise a family, the support of your existing familial network can prove a major lifeline. However, that support may come under major strain once a driving conviction enters the picture, as one care co-ordinator explained to BBC News in 2007.

The then-27-year-old from Torquay in Devon anonymously recalled being convicted of a driving offence and seeing her relationship with her mother suffer as a result. “She made me feel really, really bad. She didn’t want to see me and shut the door in my face and told me to go away.”

Hopefully, you will still have the support of many of your own relatives to make it easier to survive the emotional burden of being convicted of a driving offence. But undertaking a driver rehabilitation course and drawing upon the support resources of Unlock – an independent charity for people with convictions – could also be invaluable for lessening the all-round strain of this difficult time.

There can, believe it or not, be a bright future for you and your dependants even after you have been convicted of a motoring offence – so don’t completely lose hope!

Guest Article. Contains a sponsored link.