Check if you need to tell someone about your criminal record
Driving convictions
A court might give you a conviction for a driving offence, for example speeding or drink driving.
The conviction could be:
- a fine
- a driving ban (鈥榙isqualification鈥�)
- community service or a prison sentence
Fixed penalty notices (FPN) and penalty charge notices (PCN) are fines for minor driving offences. They will not appear on your criminal record unless a court gives you a conviction because of one.
Whether a driving conviction is 鈥榮pent鈥� affects what information you need to give a potential employer, university or college.
鈥楨ndorsements鈥� (penalty points)
A court will give a driving ban or fine with penalty points that appear on your driving record. This is known as an 鈥榚ndorsement鈥�.
An endorsement can stay on your driving record for longer than your criminal record.
This means a potential employer, university or college might find out about a driving ban or fine after it鈥檚 spent, if they request to check your driving record.
When a fine with an endorsement becomes spent
The fine becomes spent either:
- 5 years after you got it, if you were 18 or over
- 2 years and 6 months after you got it, if you were under 18
When a driving ban with an endorsement becomes spent
When a driving ban becomes spent depends on how:
- long the ban lasts
- old you were when you got it
If you were 18 or over
If the ban lasts less than 5 years, it becomes spent 5 years after you got it.
If the ban lasts more than 5 years, it becomes spent on the date it ends.
If you were under 18
If the ban lasts less than 2 years and 6 months, it becomes spent 2 years and 6 months after you got it.
If the ban lasts more than 2 years and 6 months, it becomes spent on the date it ends.