Being accused of drug driving in the UK is a serious matter. A conviction can lead to a driving ban, heavy fines, a criminal record, and long-term consequences for your employment and lifestyle. But here’s the truth many people don’t know there are valid defences to drug driving charges.
At Momentum Solicitors, we are experienced drug driving solicitors dedicated to protecting your licence, your freedom, and your future. If you’ve been arrested for drug driving, we’re here to help you build a strong, strategic defence from day one.
What Is Drug Driving?
Under Section 5A of the Road Traffic Act 1988, it’s illegal to drive with certain drugs in your system above legal limits – this applies to both illegal drugs (like cannabis or cocaine) and prescription medications (such as diazepam or morphine). You can be charged even if your driving wasn’t obviously impaired.
But every drug driving case depends on the details – and that’s where our specialist legal team steps in.
Top Drug Driving Defences
Our experienced solicitors examine every angle to challenge the evidence against you. Some of the most effective defences to drug driving charges include:
1. Procedural Errors by the Police
There are multiple ways in which the procedure at the police station can be challenged. Below are outlined the most common ways we can challenge the procedure completed at the police station when you are under investigation for drug driving.
- Completion of the MGDD procedure
The first way we can challenge the procedure is whether the police have given you what is known as the ‘statutory warning’. This is a requirement under Section 7(7) of the Road Traffic Act 1988. An example of the statutory warning in a drug driving case is as follows:
I require you to provide a specimen of blood which will be taken by a doctor or health care professional. You may inform the doctor or health care professional of medical reasons why a specimen of blood cannot be taken by them, but the matter will be for the doctor or health care professional to determine. You will be supplied with part of the specimen if you so require. The other part will be sent to a forensic laboratory for analysis. I warn you that failure to provide a specimen will render you liable to prosecution.
If the above is not explained to you prior to the sample of blood being taken from you, then the blood result should be rendered inadmissible, even if the blood test is provided and a result is obtained. This is further supported by the case of Murray v. DPP.
- Have Multiple Blood Samples Been Taken?
Another way which we can challenge the procedure completed at the police station is whether more than one sample of blood is taken from you. According to the case of Poole v Lockwood, once a person has furnished one sample of blood, the request is then completed.
If a further sample is taken from a person in custody, then it would be impossible to know which sample the result has been derived from, and therefore, the blood result cannot be deemed admissible in a drug driving case.
This would therefore force the prosecution to offer no evidence in a drug driving matter, as they could not prove that someone was over the limit at the time they drove a vehicle.
- Your Rights to Your Own Blood Sample
The final way we would challenge the procedure of the police in a drug driving matter is whether you have been offered part of your blood sample.
As above, the correct procedure in the police station is that one sample of blood is to be taken from the Defendant, this is then to be split into two by the health care professional. One part of this sample is sent of to the laboratory for testing, and the other part is offered to the Defendant.
This defence comes under Section 15(5) of the Rad Traffic Act 1988.
As above, if the police do not offer you part of your blood sample, or do not provide this to you upon your request, the blood result may be rendered inadmissible, and you could be successful in defending a drug driving charge
This may also apply to you if the police have convinced you not to take your blood sample, or the police have said that you must pay them to take the sample (I have personally seen examples of both!)
2. Inaccurate or Contaminated Testing
Drug driving cases rely on blood test results, but mistakes in handling, lab analysis, or storage can lead to false readings. At Chris Rudd Solicitors, we work with independent toxicology experts to challenge flawed evidence and raise doubt in court.
As a general rule, we would never recommend accepting your blood results until you have had these results assessed by an independent expert. The following questions could mean that your sample is inadmissible in court:
- Has the sample been stored or transported incorrectly?
- Was the sampling kit used valid and within its use by date?
- Have the forensic laboratory applied the correct reduction to your blood result?
- Can continuity be established between the police station and the laboratory?
Any of the above could lead to your sample being inadmissible, the therefore a full defence to drug driving.
3. Unintentional Drug Consumption
Were your drinks spiked? Exposed to second-hand cannabis smoke? If you unknowingly ingested a substance, this may be a viable defence. We will investigate every possible explanation and gather the evidence needed to support your case.
If you believe that this drug driving defence may apply to you, please contact our office today and discuss this with one of our motoring law specialists.
4. Legally Prescribed Medication
Taking prescription drugs does not automatically make you guilty. If you were taking medication as instructed and your driving wasn’t impaired, you may have a complete defence under UK law. We obtain detailed medical reports to prove your lawful use.
This defence applies where:
- A person has taken a drug that is prescribed or supplied for medical or dental purposes
- A person has taken a drug in accordance with any directions given by the person who prescribed it
- A person is not impaired using the prescribed drug at the time of driving
This amounts to a full defence to drug driving under Section 5A(3) of the Road Traffic Act 1988, as long as the above points are adhered to by motorists with a prescription.
Our advice for this defence, is to keep a copy of your prescription with you when your driving, so this can be provided to the police if you are pulled over. The laboratory will then consider your prescription in line with your blood result in order to establish whether you will be charged with drug driving.
If you are charged with drug driving and have a prescription for the drug you are charged with, please contact our office in order to discuss this with one of our motoring law specialists urgently.
(Reminder: this defence can only be used if you provide a sample of blood at the police station. A prescription does not mean that a person can refuse to give a blood sample)
5. No Proof of Driving
You cannot be convicted unless the prosecution proves that you were actually driving or in control of the vehicle. If you were parked, sleeping, or not behind the wheel, and did not have any intention of driving the vehicle, we can challenge the charge on this basis.
Furthermore, if you were involved in a collision, or the police attended your home address, the prosecution may not be able to prove you were the driver of the vehicle. If the prosecution cannot prove you were the driver, then they will fail to prove their case. This would then amount to a successful defence to drug driving.
Written by Jacob Crook (Head of Motoring)
