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Land Transport Act 1998

Disqualification, demerit points, licence suspension, and vehicle impoundment - Demerit points system

89: Notice of demerit points

You could also call this:

“You'll get a letter if you have too many points on your driving record”

If you have 50 or more demerit points on your driving record, the Director will try to send you a letter as soon as possible. This letter will tell you how many demerit points you have and what might happen if you get more points.

If your driver’s licence gets suspended or you are disqualified from driving because of demerit points, it still counts even if you didn’t get the letter or if you got it after the suspension or disqualification happened.

The Director can send this letter to you by regular mail to your last known home, work, or mailing address. If they do this, the letter is considered delivered when it would normally arrive in the mail, unless you can prove otherwise. To show that they sent the letter, they just need to prove that they addressed it correctly and put it in the mail.

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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=DLM435011.

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88: Demerit points to be recorded by Director, or

"Director records demerit points when you break driving rules"

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90: Suspension of licence or disqualification from driving under demerit points system, or

"Losing your driving rights if you get too many demerit points"

Part 7 Disqualification, demerit points, licence suspension, and vehicle impoundment
Demerit points system

89Notice of demerit points

  1. If 50 or more demerit points have been recorded against a person, the Director must, when reasonably practicable, send that person a notice in writing telling the person—

  2. the number of demerit points recorded against that person; and
    1. the consequences of further demerit points being recorded against that person.

      1. No suspension imposed under section 90 in respect of a person's driver licence, or disqualification imposed under that section in respect of a person, is invalid merely because—

      2. a notice under subsection (1) was not given to that person or was given to that person after the imposition of that suspension or disqualification; or
        1. a notice given under that subsection was not received by that person or was received by that person after the imposition of that suspension or disqualification.

          1. If a notice given under subsection (1) is sent by ordinary post addressed to the defendant at the defendant's last known place of residence or business or postal address, then, unless the contrary is shown, the notice is served when the notice would have been delivered in the ordinary course of post, and in proving service it is sufficient to prove that the notice was properly addressed and posted.

          Compare
          Notes
          • Section 89(1): amended, on , by section 80 of the Land Transport (NZTA) Legislation Amendment Act 2020 (2020 No 48).