Fail to co-operate with a preliminary test - motor vehicle offence

Points to prove

• 1. A constable required the defendant to co-operate with a preliminary test (preliminary breath test s 6A, preliminary impairment test s 6B, or preliminary drug test s 6C) administered by that or another constable (s 6(1))
• 2. one of the qualifying grounds in s 6(2)-(5) applied: reasonable suspicion that the defendant is or has been driving, attempting to drive or in charge of a motor vehicle on a road or other public place with alcohol or a drug in his body or while under the influence of a drug (s 6(2)-(3)); or is or has been driving, attempting to drive or in charge and has committed a traffic offence while the vehicle was in motion (s 6(4)); or an accident occurred owing to the presence of a motor vehicle on a road or other public place and the constable reasonably believes the defendant was driving, attempting to drive or in charge at the time (s 6(5))
• 3. where the requirement arose under s 6(2), (3) or (4), the constable administering the test was in uniform (s 6(7))
• 4. the defendant failed to co-operate (co-operation requires it to be given in a way enabling the test's objective to be satisfactorily achieved — s 11(3))
• 5. without reasonable excuse (s 6(6))

Defences

• Reasonable excuse — absence of reasonable excuse is an element of s 6(6) itself; confined by case law to physical or mental inability to co-operate (R v Lennard [1973] 1 WLR 483, applied to preliminary tests)

Mode of trial & maximum penalty

Summary (motoring) — Summary: level 3 fine — endorsable (4 points), discretionary disqualification

Sources

• www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/53/schedule/2/part/I
• www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/52/section/6