Talon Legal won a P2 licence appeal for a shift supervisor whose two jobs, early starts and after-midnight finishes could not be covered by public transport, rideshare or lifts.
Our client was a P2 provisional driver disqualified for six months after a speeding offence. He held two jobs at workplaces in different parts of greater Adelaide, with rostered starts from about 6:00 am and finishes after midnight. We appealed the disqualification to the Magistrates Court under section 81BB of the Motor Vehicles Act 1959 (SA), and the appeal was allowed.
Outcome at a glance
- P2 licence appeal allowed in the Magistrates Court of South Australia under section 81BB
- Six month disqualification removed
- Both jobs, including a shift supervisor role, kept
- Evidence addressed hardship, transport alternatives and future risk
Background
Our client received a six month disqualification notice after a speeding offence committed near a change in the signed speed limit. He accepted responsibility for the offence and did not ask the court to treat it as trivial.
The case turned on his working week. One job carried shift supervisor responsibilities; the other was supermarket work. The two workplaces were a long way apart. His roster could start at about 6:00 am and finish after midnight, sometimes as late as 1:00 am, and he was expected to respond to short-notice call-ins. In some weeks the two rosters together approached 84 hours.
The appeal had to prove more than inconvenience. It had to show why a disqualification would make that roster unworkable and put real employment at risk.
The law: appeals under section 81BB
A provisional driver disqualified under section 81B can appeal to the Magistrates Court unless one of the bars in section 81BB(2) applies, including eligibility for a Safer Driver Agreement. The court may allow the appeal if it is satisfied, on evidence given on oath, that the disqualification would result in severe and unusual hardship to the driver or a dependant, and, if the Crown produces the driving record, that the record does not indicate a substantial risk (section 81BB(4)). The driver’s evidence must include the transport that would be available and why it would not meet the driver’s needs (section 81BB(5)). An appeal is only available where a Safer Driver Agreement is not (section 81BB(2)(a)); for many first offences in the 10 to 19 km/h band the agreement is the route instead.
The Supreme Court described severe and unusual hardship in Holden v Registrar of Motor Vehicles [2011] SASC 205 at [12] as hardship beyond what can be expected in the generality of cases, which would operate harshly in the driver’s particular circumstances. In Cavill v Registrar of Motor Vehicles [2013] SASC 33 at [32], the court found that hardship which could be managed with family help and taxis did not meet the test.
Why the licence was critical
Our client did not work fixed office hours at one location. He travelled between two workplaces, and much of his working day fell outside the hours public transport could cover. His supervisory role meant his attendance could not be fitted around a bus timetable.
The short-notice call-ins mattered as much as the regular roster. Even where a daytime public transport route existed, it gave no answer to a 6:00 am start, a finish after midnight or an unplanned request to come in.
The evidence of hardship
We organised the evidence so the court could lay the actual roster beside the available transport. It identified both workplaces, the earliest starts, the latest finishes and how often short-notice attendance was required.
It then dealt with each alternative section 81BB(5) asks about. Family and friends could not provide a standing transport service across two jobs and irregular hours. Rideshare for every shift was not financially sustainable. Walking or cycling was not realistic over those distances, particularly before dawn or after midnight.
The hardship was proved by the roster itself, not by a general statement that our client needed to drive to work.
Risk and insight
Our client accepted the speeding offence and the seriousness of breaching his provisional licence conditions. The appeal did not depend on disputing the offence or blaming the road environment.
His evidence focused on what he had understood since the offence and the practical changes he had made to avoid a repeat, so the court could assess the present risk rather than treat the disqualification as automatic.
The hearing
Our client gave sworn evidence about both jobs, the roster, the short-notice requirements and each transport alternative. The documents kept that evidence precise and stopped the application becoming a series of unsupported assertions. We submitted that the combined effect of the hours, the locations and the employment obligations took the case well beyond ordinary inconvenience.
Outcome
The Magistrates Court allowed the appeal under section 81BB. The disqualification was removed, and our client was able to take the steps required with Service SA to resume lawful driving, subject to the licence conditions that continued to apply.
The result kept both jobs and avoided the financial consequences that would have followed from losing either of them.
Key takeaways
A roster proves hardship better than a description of it. Actual start times, finish times and locations let the court test the claim against the transport that is really available.
Two jobs can create hardship greater than either job alone, because the travel between them and the combined hours compound the transport problem.
Short-notice work needs its own evidence, because it is the part of a roster public transport is least able to meet.
Accepting the offence helps on the risk question. Section 81BB(4)(b) asks whether the record indicates a substantial risk, and an appellant who explains what has changed gives the court a basis to find that it does not.
Related licence appeal results
- Successful P2 licence appeal for a regional apprentice
- Provisional licence appeal for a warehouse shift worker
- Probationary licence appeal for a plant operator
- Licence appeal for an international student
Speak with Talon Legal about a licence appeal
If you have received a provisional or probationary licence disqualification notice, the appeal should be lodged before the disqualification takes effect, and each appeal turns on its own evidence. Book a same-day free 30-minute consultation or call (08) 7094 2021 to speak with a senior traffic lawyer, or read our guide to drivers licence appeals in South Australia.
