Drug Driving Cocaine Solicitors | Expert Defence UK

Cocaine is the actual drug substance with a legal limit of 10µg per litre of blood. BZE (benzoylecgonine) is the metabolite produced when your liver breaks down cocaine, with a legal limit of 50µg per litre. Importantly, BZE does not cause impairment and has no effect on driving ability. However, it can remain detectable in your blood for up to four days after cocaine use, making you liable for prosecution long after any effects have worn off.

Cocaine itself has a relatively short detection window due to rapid metabolism. However, BZE can be detected in blood for up to four days after cocaine consumption. Furthermore, in regular users, BZE can accumulate in the system, extending detection times even longer. Consequently, you can be prosecuted for drug driving several days after last using cocaine.

Yes. This is one of our most powerful defences. Specifically, cocaine in blood biodegrades into BZE if samples are not stored properly or analysis is delayed. Therefore, if your sample was not analysed within 101 days of collection, cocaine may have degraded into BZE, artificially lowering cocaine levels while artificially increasing BZE levels. Our drug driving cocaine solicitors work with forensic toxicologists to challenge unreliable results.

According to sentencing guidelines, having both cocaine and BZE detected should not be treated as having two separate drugs in your system. Therefore, this should not be considered an aggravating factor that increases your sentence. Moreover, our drug driving cocaine solicitors ensure courts apply guidelines correctly.

A conviction carries a mandatory minimum 12-month driving ban (36 months if you have a previous drink or drug driving conviction within 10 years). However, with strong legal representation from experienced drug driving cocaine solicitors, many clients are acquitted before conviction. Furthermore, even where guilt is clear, we may identify procedural errors or technical defences that result in charges being dropped.

No. Passive exposure is not a valid defence under Section 5A. Moreover, the specified limits offence does not require proof of deliberate consumption. Therefore, arguments about passive exposure will not succeed in cocaine drug driving cases.

Refusing to provide a blood specimen without reasonable excuse will result in you being charged with failing to provide a specimen under Section 7(6) of the Road Traffic Act 1988. Importantly, this offence carries similar penalties to drug driving itself, including a mandatory minimum 12-month driving ban. Therefore, our drug driving cocaine solicitors strongly advise providing a sample unless you have a genuine reasonable excuse.

Reasonable excuses may include genuine needle phobia (trypanophobia) supported by medical evidence, medical conditions such as haemophilia that make blood sampling dangerous, or physical injuries preventing blood samples. However, a mere dislike of needles is insufficient. Moreover, medical evidence is typically required to support any reasonable excuse defence.

If you were unconscious, blood may be taken without your consent. However, you should be contacted later for your consent to send the sample for analysis. Furthermore, specific procedures must be followed under Section 7A of the Road Traffic Act 1988. Our drug driving cocaine solicitors challenge cases where proper consent wasn't obtained or statutory requirements weren't followed.

Roadside drug swab devices can detect cocaine and cannabis but are not sufficiently accurate to be used as prosecution evidence. Therefore, if a swab returns positive, you'll be arrested and taken to the police station for an evidential blood sample. Moreover, these devices can malfunction or produce false positives, which our drug driving cocaine solicitors challenge.

No legal medical use defence exists for cocaine in the UK. Specifically, cocaine is a Class A controlled drug. Furthermore, even if a doctor theoretically prescribed it (which is virtually unheard of), it could not be legally obtained in the UK. Therefore, prescription defences do not apply to cocaine drug driving cases.

Yes. A drug driving conviction creates a criminal record that affects employment prospects, particularly jobs requiring driving or positions of trust. Moreover, you'll face a mandatory driving ban of at least 12 months. Furthermore, car insurance premiums will increase significantly for at least 5 years. Additionally, international travel may be impacted, particularly to countries like the USA and Canada.

If convicted and banned, you may be offered a Drug Drive Rehabilitation Course. Upon successful completion, your ban can be reduced by up to 25%. However, you must agree to attend at the time of sentencing, and the course must be approved. Nevertheless, our priority is helping you avoid conviction altogether through robust legal defence.

As soon as possible - ideally immediately after arrest or charge. The earlier we're involved, the better we can prepare your defence. Specifically, early instruction allows us to preserve crucial evidence, obtain medical records promptly, challenge police procedures while memories are fresh, and instruct expert toxicologists. Therefore, don't wait until just before your court hearing.

Yes. While our office is in Rochdale, we represent clients across England and Wales in all magistrates' courts and Crown Courts. Moreover, we offer remote consultations, evening appointments, and weekend consultations to accommodate your schedule.

We offer flexible payment plans, competitive fixed fees, and free initial consultations. Importantly, the penalties of conviction - including driving bans, insurance cost increases, potential job loss, and criminal records - far outweigh legal fees. Furthermore, professional representation from drug driving cocaine solicitors dramatically improves your chances of acquittal.

Never plead guilty without first obtaining expert legal advice from drug driving cocaine solicitors. Many clients who thought they had no defence have been acquitted after we identified procedural errors, contamination issues, or technical defences. Moreover, even a guilty plea only reduces sentences by up to one-third, whereas acquittal means no conviction, no ban, and no criminal record. Therefore, always get your case reviewed first.

Yes. We work with leading forensic toxicologists who examine calibration and maintenance records of testing equipment, chain of custody documentation, laboratory accreditation and quality control procedures, whether testing followed Home Office approved methods, and potential cross-contamination during analysis. Consequently, we successfully challenge laboratory procedures and results in appropriate cases.

Yes, particularly in cases involving high blood readings, repeat offenders, or aggravating factors such as accidents causing injury. The court can impose up to 6 months' imprisonment. However, custodial sentences are typically reserved for the most serious cases. Moreover, community orders with unpaid work are more common for first offences with lower readings.

Even readings marginally above the legal limits result in prosecution. However, our drug driving cocaine solicitors challenge such cases by examining blood sample degradation, laboratory analysis accuracy, police procedural compliance, and storage conditions. Furthermore, lower readings typically attract more lenient sentences if convicted. Therefore, defending these cases is absolutely worthwhile.

Call us now on +44 (0) 161 660 6050 or book online at www.scarsdalesolicitors.com. We offer evening and weekend appointments for your convenience. Moreover, we provide multilingual support in English, Urdu, and Punjabi. Additionally, we guarantee a call back within 30 minutes during office hours, and we're available 24/7 for urgent matters.