Nearly half of Irish motorists feel hard done by when it comes to penalty points. That is the latest findings of a poll by AA Ireland that showed, while 46.4 per cent of the 4,000 motorists polled felt the circumstances in which they had received penalty points were fair, 48.4 per cent of respondents felt harshly done by.
"Motorists know the importance of penalty points and have overwhelmingly supported them." Says Director of Policy Conor Faughnan. "But at the same time nobody likes to receive them. A lot of people complained that, while they may have been speeding, so were the cars in front of and behind them, and they are inclined to feel harshly treated because they were the ones who were stopped."
Nevertheless there is an almost universal acknowledgement that the penalty point system is working. While roughly a third of drivers have at least one point on their licence, less than three per cent have accumulated six or more points.
"This is a clear indication that once a driver receives points once they become much more inclined to be careful," says Faughnan. "That is what you would want to see."
As part of the poll motorists were also asked about point swapping (taking the points for a close friend or family member to prevent them from being disqualified). While only a small proportion (less than two per cent) admitted to being asked to swap points the AA is keen to point out that such practices are illegal.
"While you might think you're doing someone a good turn, by taking someone else's penalty points not only are you lying to the Gardaí, you're also breaking the law," says Faughnan.