Immediate Roadside Prohibition Lawyers Victoria

An Immediate Roadside Prohibition, commonly referred to as an IRP, entails a driver of a vehicle having their license suspended for a set period of time due to an impaired driving allegation. The suspension is administered under the Motor Vehicle Act which outlines the procedure, beginning at section 215.41.

The wording of the legislation is long, complicated, and difficult to read and interpret. In short, pursuant to the Motor Vehicle Act, a peace officer may require you to provide a roadside sample into an Approved Screening Device (“ASD”). If your blood alcohol concentration (“BAC”) is greater than 0.05, they will issue you a “Notice of Driving Prohibition,” and your license will immediately be suspended.

The length of the IRP is determined by your BAC, as well as by whether this is your first offence.

If upon providing an ASD roadside sample it is determined that your BAC is in the warning range between 0.05-0.08 BAC, the following consequences will result:

1st time within five-year period

• Immediate seizure of your driver’s license, and a 3-day suspension
• The vehicle you are driving will be impounded for 3 days
• You are required to pay a $200 administrative penalty
• You have to apply to have your driver’s license reinstated and pay the license reinstatement fee as well as any other outstanding debts to ICBC or the Government of BC

2nd time within five-year period

• Immediate seizure of your driver’s license, and a 7-day suspension
• The vehicle you are driving will be impounded for 7 days
• You are required to pay a $300 administrative penalty
• You may be referred to the Responsible Driver Program
• You have to apply to have your driver’s license reinstated and pay the license reinstatement fee as well as any other outstanding debts to ICBC or the Government of BC

3rd time within five-year period

• Immediate seizure of your driver’s license, and a 30-day suspension
• The vehicle you are driving will be impounded for 30 days
• You are required to pay a $400 administrative penalty
• You may be referred to the Responsible Driver Program
• You may be referred to the Ignition Interlock Program
• You have to apply to have your driver’s license reinstated and pay the license reinstatement fee as well as any other outstanding debts to ICBC or the Government of BC

If your roadside breath sample produces a Fail result, indicating a BAC of greater than 0.08, or if you fail to provide a breath sample, you may receive a 90-day IRP if the police decide not to pursue criminal charges. A 90-day IRP entails the following consequences:

• Immediate seizure of your driver’s license, and a 90-day suspension
• The vehicle you are driving will be impounded for 30 days
• You are required to pay a $500 administrative penalty
• You may be referred to the Responsible Driver Program
• You may be referred to the Ignition Interlock Program
• You have to apply to have your driver’s license reinstated and pay the license reinstatement fee as well as any other outstanding debts to ICBC or the Government of BC

The only way to avoid serving the 90-day IRP is to successfully appeal the suspension. It is important to note that there is a 7-day deadline to appeal your license suspension. If you have had your license suspended, it is critical that you obtain a competent defence lawyer as quickly as possible, to not miss out on the opportunity to appeal.

What are the different types of roadside license suspensions?

Your driving privileges will be affected differently depending on which license suspension you are given.

• British Columbia Immediate Roadside Prohibition (“IRP”): The IRP program imposes a 7 to 90-day license suspension to drivers who produce a WARN or FAIL result on a roadside ASD test.

• 12-Hour Roadside Suspensions for Graduated Licensing Program (“GLP”) Participants: A 12-hour suspension to GLP participants who have any presence of alcohol, THC or cocaine in their body. If a GLP driver is found to have a BAC above 0.05 they will face the regular consequences of a fully licensed driver.

• 24-Hour Roadside Prohibitions: A 24-hour prohibition where police have reasonable grounds to believe that a driver’s ability to drive is impaired by alcohol or drugs. It is not necessary for police to perform ASD or physical coordination testing at the roadside in order to impose a 24-hour suspension. Your license is surrendered at the roadside and can be retrieved at the conclusion of the prohibition period.

• Administrative Driving Prohibitions (“ADP”): A 90-day suspension where a person is alleged to have committed an offence in contravention of the Criminal Code impaired driving provisions. You may also receive a criminal impaired driving charge alongside the IRP. Note that your IRP and your criminal proceedings are completely separate and distinct matters. Decisions made by criminal courts with respect to the related criminal charges have absolutely no bearing on your provincial license suspension. Regardless of the outcome of your criminal charges in criminal court, your IRP will remain in effect.

The peace officer who issues your license suspension will fill out and serve you with a “Notice of Driving Prohibition.” This Notice will indicate the type of suspension you have received, as well as the reason(s) for your license suspension.

What is the British Columbia Ignition Interlock program (IIP)?

The Ignition Interlock, colloquially referred to as a “blow box,” is a breathalyzer installed in your vehicle which requires the driver to blow into a mouthpiece before operating the vehicle. It prevents your car engine from being started if it detects alcohol on your breath.

You can contact ICBC at 1-800-950-1498 to determine if you are required to apply for an interlock-restricted driver’s license. If required, apply for the IIP by contacting Smart Start Canada. You will have to attend regularly scheduled maintenance appointments, and are responsible for the cost of the installation, removal, and maintenance of the device.

Penalties for an Immediate Roadside Prohibition in Victoria

A British Columbia Immediate Roadside Prohibition is not a criminal offence. Because it is issued by the provincial government and not the federal government, it will not show up on your criminal record. This holds true regardless of whether you fight the IRP or not.

However, an IRP can have very significant consequences.

1. Immediate consequences:

• Suspension: The suspension is for a duration of 7 to 90-days.
• Costs of Ignition Interlock program:
• $150 – Road Safety BC Administration Fee
• $145 – Installation of Ignition Interlock Device
• $195 – Vehicle Transfer Fee
• $50 – Removal of Ignition Interlock Device
• $95 – Lease (rental) Fee – Per Month
• $190 – Early Termination Fee

2. Collateral consequences:

• Insurance premium spikes: Because it will show on your driver’s abstract that you were subject to an IRP, ICBC may increase your insurance rates.

Appealing an Immediate Roadside Prohibition in Victoria

How do I file an appeal to get my license back?

An IRP has a short window of time where you are able to appeal. You must initiate the appeal within 7 days of receiving the suspension in order to be heard by the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles. The process for appealing an administrative license suspension is outlined in Section 215.5(6) of the Motor Vehicle Act. There are several critical steps in this process:

1. Submit Application for Review of an Immediate Roadside Prohibition Form

This form is available from any ICBC Driver Licensing Office. This form must include the date and location where you were issued the prohibition, as well as all relevant information to support your request for review.

2. Pay the Applicable Fee

The fees related to appealing your IRP will vary depending on whether you request an oral or written hearing. The fee for a written hearing is $100, and the fee for an oral hearing is $200.

3. Submit Argument on Appeal

Your review will be scheduled within 14 days of the date of service of the IRP. This ensures a timely decision by the Superintendent within the 21-day timeframe legislated under the Motor Vehicle Act. Regardless of the type of hearing you choose, the adjudicator will consider all the relevant information before it, including:

• Police disclosure including reports and notes,
• Sworn or affirmed statements,
• Footage such as Body Worn Camera and In-Car Digital Video, and
• Any other relevant information.

If you want the adjudicator to consider your side of the story (beyond just the legal arguments), you should consider submitting an affidavit (a sworn or affirmed statement of your version of events) as part of your materials.

After considering the evidence and the arguments made by both sides, the adjudicator will either uphold your license suspension or cancel it if it is satisfied that you did not commit the offence.  In either case, they will notify you of their decision in writing.

What are the best arguments to appeal my license suspension?

Although losing your driving privileges can have incredibly negative and potentially long-term consequences for you, the adjudicator cannot consider any issues of hardship caused by your license suspension. For example, if you lose your job because you need a valid license to work, or if you need your license to drive your children to school, the adjudicator will not consider those factors in making its decision.

Impaired driving investigations are highly technical in nature and every case is fact specific. The strongest arguments to successfully appeal your IRP will depend on the particular circumstances of your case.

The grounds for appeal of an IRP are limited to the following:

• You were not the driver or in care or control of a motor vehicle;
• You were not advised of your right to a second test on an approved screening device (ASD);
• You requested a second test, but the officer did not perform the test;
• Your second test was not performed on a different ASD;
• The prohibition was not served on the basis of the lower ASD test result;
• The result of the ASD test was not reliable;
• The ASD, which formed the basis for the prohibition, did not register a WARN reading;
• The ASD registered a WARN, but your blood alcohol content was less than 0.05 (50 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood);
• The ASD, which formed the basis for the prohibition, did not register a FAIL reading;
• The ASD registered a FAIL, but your blood alcohol content was less than 0.08 (80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood);
• You did not refuse or fail to comply with a demand to provide a breath sample;
• You had a reasonable excuse for refusing or failing to comply with a demand; or
• You did not have the required number of previous WARN range prohibitions for a 7 or 30-day prohibition (in which case the Superintendent may reduce the length of the prohibition and related monetary penalties).

How can I help appeal my license suspension in Victoria?

If you have been served with an administrative license suspension in Victoria, the following can help your lawyer prepare their written or oral argument:

• Provide your lawyer with a statement about what happened;
• Collect and maintain all documents and record about the event;
• Gather a list of witnesses that may support your version of events; and
• Log any relevant texts, emails, receipts, prescriptions, or photographic evidence.

As soon as you can, you should start to gather any information that may be of use to your lawyer. What information is relevant will depend on the facts in your case. If you are uncertain about what information to collect, you should contact one of our lawyers immediately to create a plan of action for gathering information.

What can a lawyer do to help me appeal my license suspension in Victoria?

Prior to the review, you will receive a copy of the disclosure package that will be presented to the adjudicator for your hearing. In preparation for the hearing, our lawyers will do the following:

1. Thoroughly review police actions and the evidence against you,
2. Prepare the arguments for your hearing, and
3. Assemble evidence to support your arguments.

Some of the strategies that our lawyers use include:

• Preparing and having you and/or other witnesses swear or affirm an Affidavit in support of your version of events,
• Assembling photos and videos,
• Identifying mistakes in the actions of the police which undermine your Charter-protected rights,
• Researching past decisions that support your arguments, and
• Uncovering administrative and technical errors.

Our experienced impaired driving lawyers will then argue before the Board, either in person for an oral hearing or with persuasive written arguments, that your license suspension should be cancelled.

What’s Next?

We have tried our best to provide a general outline of what you can expect if you find yourself in this situation; however, impaired driving investigations are highly technical in nature and fact specific.

Even if you think that there is no hope that your appeal would be successful, our team of experienced impaired driving lawyers will review your case thoroughly and find as many arguments as possible to challenge your license suspension.

To learn more about how we can help, please contact our team of Victoria Impaired Driving Lawyers within the 7-day appeal period to conduct a thorough review of your situation. We will tailor a precise strategy that targets your successful license appeal.