Double Demerits Alert: Don’t Lose Your Licence This Long Weekend

Double Demerits are in full force between June 7 and 10 June, 2019. Here are the states and territories where you need to be extra careful on the road this weekend and the various offences that the scheme applies to.

The Queens Birthday is a public holiday celebrated in NSW, Melbourne, Tasmania, South Australia, the Northern Territory and Canberra. (Queensland and WA celebrate on a separate date.) This year, it takes place on Monday, 10 June which means we get a long weekend to enjoy.

The downside is that police will be slugging motorists who do the wrong thing with double demerits. This means you could potentially lose your licence for failing to wear a seat belt or driving slightly too fast in a school zone.

Here’s what each state is doing over the Easter period, according to official police statements:

NSW

Get caught speeding, illlegally using your mobile phone, not using a seatbelt or helmet this holiday period, and you’ll face double the consequences. Double demerits are in force from 7 to 10 June 2019.

Double demerit points apply for speeding, seatbelt, motorcycle helmet and mobile phone offences. Certain driving and parking offences attract an additional demerit point if committed in an operating school zone. Double demerit points can also apply when school zones are in operation during holiday periods. If you commit a speed, seatbelt or helmet offence during this combined period, the demerit point value applying for the school zone will be doubled.

ACT

Double demerits are in force from June 7 until 11.59pm on Monday. Six demerit points can be applied to the licence of any driver who does not wear a seatbelt or who permits passengers under 16 years of age to travel in a vehicle unrestrained.

Double demerits apply to all speeding, seatbelt, riding without a helmet and mobile phone offences. An additional demerit point applies for all other traffic offences.

Queensland:

In Queensland, double demerit points are applied to persons who repeatedly commit specific offences that increase the road safety risk to the person themselves or other road users. Double demerit points apply all year round for these repeat offenders as a way of discouraging dangerous driving behaviours on a continuing basis.

Double demerit points are allocated for certain second or subsequent driver seatbelt offences, motorbike helmet offences and offences for speeding more than 20km/h over the speed limit, that are committed within 1 year of a previous offence. Double demerit points also apply for second or subsequent mobile phone offences that are committed by drivers within 1 year of an earlier offence.

A person does not necessarily have to commit the same type of offence a second or subsequent time to be allocated double demerit points. A second or subsequent offence only needs to be within the same offence group for the person to accumulate double demerit points.

Western Australia:

Western Australia does not celebrate the Queen’s Birthday until 23 September. So you’re in the clear (but still drive safely!)