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August 2023
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What is the hip flask defence?The hip flask defence is a type of factual defence. It arises when you are thought to be operating or in control of a vehicle while over the prescribed alcohol limit. However, the prosecution is actually mistaken because the alcohol was consumed after you stopped driving. So, the police may arrive at the scene of an accident and request that you take a breathalyser test –which then shows that you are over the legal limit. Yet what this test does not show is that while you have been drinking alcohol, you only did so once you had finished driving. Put another way, you were actually driving while sober, or with a small amount of alcohol in your system. Why is it called the hip flask defence?This defence has become known colloquially as the hip flask defence. This harks back to the days when someone would take a drink from their hip flask to steady their nerves. Of course, you may not actually have been drinking from a hip flask, but the name has stuck. The hip flask defence and the lawUnder Section 15(2) of the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, there is a presumption that the amount of alcohol measured in a motorist’s breath, blood or urine is not less than the amount of alcohol in their system at the time of driving. However, this presumption can be rebutted with the hip flask defence. But it is up to you to prove it. Read more on our full post The Hip Flask Defence. Police Tighten Up Procedures To Stop The Hip Flask Defence Of course the last thing the police want is for the guilty to escape Prosecution and punishment. They now have strict procedures to try and combat this. The following passages are taken from the Hampshire Police Procedure Manual (Source) The Procedure
If you are unfortunate to be involved in a similar situation do call us ASAP. If it is not a drunk driving charge but another motoring offence we may be able to plead exceptional hardship driving ban. You may be able to keep your licence. Totting up points. Comments are closed.
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