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Land Transport Act 1998

Disqualification, demerit points, licence suspension, and vehicle impoundment - Suspension of transport service driver and other persons

87D: Immediate suspension of transport service driver and other persons in interests of public safety

You could also call this:

“Emergency stop for unsafe drivers, instructors, or testers to keep people safe”

The Director can immediately stop you from driving a vehicle used in a transport service or from being a driving instructor or testing officer. This can happen if the Director thinks you’re not suitable for the job and that public safety is at risk. It can also happen if you’re charged with a serious crime that would make you unsuitable for these roles.

The Director might decide you’re not suitable if they believe you’re not a ‘fit and proper person’ as defined in the law. They might also do this if they think it’s necessary to protect people from serious or organised crime.

If you’re charged with a crime that would make you unsuitable for these jobs if you were found guilty, you can also be suspended right away.

In this law, a ‘driving instructor’ is someone who has a special permission to teach driving. A ‘testing officer’ is someone who has permission to test drivers. Both of these permissions are given under the Land Transport (Driver Licensing) Rule 1999.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM435003.

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87C: Procedure for disqualifying person under section 87A or section 87B, or

"How to properly stop someone from driving under certain rules"

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87E: Procedure for suspending persons under section 87D, or

"How the government tells you about and handles your driving suspension"

Part 7 Disqualification, demerit points, licence suspension, and vehicle impoundment
Suspension of transport service driver and other persons

87DImmediate suspension of transport service driver and other persons in interests of public safety

  1. If the circumstances described in subsection (2) apply, the Director may, by notice in writing to the person concerned, immediately suspend that person from—

  2. driving any vehicle used in a transport service (other than a rental service) or a specified class of transport service:
    1. being a driving instructor or testing officer, as the case may be.

      1. The circumstances referred to in subsection (1) are—

      2. the Director considers that—
        1. the person concerned is not a fit and proper person within the meaning of subpart 2 of Part 4A to drive a transport service vehicle or to be a driving instructor or testing officer, as the case may be; and
          1. the interests of public safety, or the need to ensure that the public is protected from serious or organised criminal activity, would seem to require immediate suspension of the person as a transport service driver, driving instructor, or testing officer, as the case may be; or
          2. the person has been charged with any offence that is of such a nature that the interests of public safety, or the need to protect the public against serious or organised criminal activity, would require that a person convicted of committing such an offence not be a transport service driver, or driving instructor, or testing officer, as the case may be.

            1. In this section and sections 87E and 87F,—

              driving instructor means a person who holds a driving instructor endorsement under Part 5 of the Land Transport (Driver Licensing) Rule 1999

                testing officer means a person who holds a testing officer endorsement under Part 5 of the Land Transport (Driver Licensing) Rule 1999.

                Compare
                Notes
                • Section 87D: inserted, on , by section 45 of the Land Transport Amendment Act 2005 (2005 No 77).
                • Section 87D(1): amended, on , by section 75(1) of the Land Transport (NZTA) Legislation Amendment Act 2020 (2020 No 48).
                • Section 87D(1): amended, on , by section 51 of the Land Transport (Road Safety and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2011 (2011 No 13).
                • Section 87D(2)(a): amended, on , by section 75(2) of the Land Transport (NZTA) Legislation Amendment Act 2020 (2020 No 48).