What Car? Q&A - Must I disclose all speeding penalties?

Q: I'm collecting together insurance quotes and am often being asked about any speeding penalties I've ever had, regardless of how long ago I might have collected them. Do I have to disclose all of them?
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A: This is a little bit of a grey area. There are three dates to bear in mind.

After three years, points are no longer counted towards the 'totting up' 12-point automatic ban (a six-month minimum ban, incidentally, so be very careful).

After four years, you can send your licence off to the DVLA to have them removed from the paper section of your licence.

All things considered, it's probably best to still disclose the points that are three or four years old.

After five years, fines are said to be spent under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. That means you don't have to disclose them in a court if a judge or magistrate asks if you have previous speeding convictions. Our advice is that if you can say 'no' to a judge or magistrate, you can say happily say 'no' to an insurer.