AIBU to wonder whether I should report an accidental offence?

[AccidentalCriminal]

So I recently found out that I unknowingly and unwittingly broke the law last year.

No victim involved and I honestly and truly didn't know I'd done it.

Would you report yourself or just accept you got away with it?

A criminal conviction would destroy my career. But I also feel terrible that I've done something illegal.

WWYD?

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Duplicate post….

What some people don’t seem to realise is that 2 minor speeding offences would normally lead to a driving awareness course for the first and 3 points for the second. Someone with 3 points isn’t considered a terrible driver by most people.

The OP had not updated her details with the DVLA. Her fault, as she accepts, but the result is that she wouldn’t have received 2 NIPs, or subsequent summons, and therefore had 12 points and a totting ban for the same offences.

Alrhough she was unaware, she was still committing the offence of driving whilst disqualified. Her insurance would either have been void or voidable, depending on the policy, but we can’t tell that from here, and it doesn’t matter now.

It seems the OP is not an unusually bad driver, or she would have been stopped during the 6 months of the ban for some violation.

OP priorities now should be:

• making 100% sure her insurance company knows the details (as otherwise is fraud and insurance could be voided)
• contacting the convicting court to find out the fine details as otherwise it could be sent out to bailiffs or lead to a warrant for unpaid fines. That is the priority over paying to alleviate guilty feelings.

Similar happened to us a few years back. My car was registered in my husband’s name (I was main driver on insurance). We forgot to change the address on the registration and I got a driving fine I didn’t know about. By the time we had found out I can’t remember if it was a summons to court or if they took it to court in his absence. He spoke to DVLA and he was faced with 6 extra points (so 9 in total) or 6 points in total and a bigger fine. He didn’t go to court in person and took the 6 points and bigger fine. Him getting insurance was a ball ache for a while (he has to take the points/ fine as it had gone beyond officially nominating me- we did tell them it was me driving!)

Well you’ve managed to convey pretty much the opposite of “feeling trouble” in the majority of your posts.

Have you told anyone in RL about this?

Don't report yourself, there's been no actual victim.

But stop speeding, and drive more carefully.

😂

I see. Well I'm sorry if you've interpreted my posts that way, but apart from saying several times that I feell guilty and embarrassed I'm not sure what else I can say.

No I haven't, for obvious reasons.

Alone, yes.

I didn't get my road tax reminder one year and drove for several weeks before I then got a letter saying it was overdue (this was before you had to do SORN etc).

I just paid quickly and moved on with my life.

I did the late MOT thing once many years ago. Had the date of my old car in my head.

They have a date on!?

'The fact the OP made a mumsnet post to discuss that they feel bad is quite a big indicator that they are worried. Most people would just file it and move on.

Can’t remember the last time I checked mine! Impressive that you did! But the DVLA send out reminders for DL 1-2 months before expiry, which was how I knew to renew.

Do you have anyone in real life that you could confide in if this is making you feel terrible?

Thank you 😊

You’ve done me a favour, reminded me that my MOT runs out on Monday and I’ve been putting off booking it in.

Very lucky that you happened to check the expiry date on your DL. As that would have been another driving crime!

A reminder letter would have been sent to your old address but you obviously missed that too.

As I say, if you really do feel terrible, is there literally no one in real life you can talk to about it?