Drink Driving Penalties for NSW
Drink driving is considered a serious traffic offence in NSW.
There are a number of penalties for drink driving or PCA offences, depending on the concentration of alcohol in your blood at the time of the reading, and whether you have committed any previous traffic offences.
When you are convicted of a drink driving offence, you will face a minimum period of disqualification, and an automatic period of disqualification.
The automatic period of disqualification is the standard time period that is considered reasonable for that particular offence, but in some cases, the magistrate can be persuaded to reduce the disqualification period to the minimum or even to give you a section 10 dismissal or conditional release order – which means no conviction or disqualification at all.
Here is a summary of the drink driving offences and penalties for NSW:
| PCA offence | Penalties | First Offence | Second or subsequent offence |
| High range PCA (Blood alcohol concentration of 0.15 or above) OR Refuse a breath analysis, hinder or obstruct taking of a blood sample, wilfully alter the concentration in the blood. |
Maximum court- imposed fine | $3,300 | $5,500 |
| Maximum gaol term | 18 months | 2 years | |
| Disqualification | |||
| -minimum | 12 months | 2 years | |
| -maximum | Unlimited | Unlimited | |
| -automatic* | 3 years | 5 years | |
| Immediate licence suspension | Yes | Yes | |
| Mid range PCA (Blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 to less than 0.15) |
Maximum court- imposed fine | $2,200 | $3,300 |
| Maximum gaol term | 9 months | 12 months | |
| Disqualification | |||
| -minimum | 6 months | 12 months | |
| -maximum | Unlimited | Unlimited | |
| -automatic* | 12 months | 3 years | |
| Immediate licence suspension | Yes | Yes | |
| Low range PCA (Blood alcohol concentration of 0.05 to less than 0.08) OR Novice range PCA OR Special range PCA |
Maximum court- imposed fine | $1,100 | $2,200 |
| Maximum gaol term | N/a | N/a | |
| Disqualification | |||
| -minimum | 3 months | 6 months | |
| -maximum | 6 months | Unlimited | |
| -automatic* | 6 months | 12 months | |
| Immediate licence suspension | No | No |
* ‘automatic’ is the disqualification period that applies in the absence of a specific court order.
For any questions regarding your drink driving case, please contact one of our experienced drink driving lawyers today.
Whatever your situation, we will work with you to get the best possible outcome for your case.