Finepost · Fines · Codes · CU10
CU10 : using a vehicle with defective brakes
Checked 22 July 2026 · How we check our figures
What it means
CU10 attaches to the state of the machine, not the state of your knowledge: using a vehicle with defective brakes, s. 41A RTA 1988, is complete the moment the pedal or the handbrake underperforms on the road, whether or not you had reason to suspect it. What the strictness gives back is the special reasons argument: a genuinely latent defect can spare the endorsement without disturbing the conviction, and that is argued in a courtroom, not on the form. The repair-instead exit and the MOT point sit in the family note below.
Points and how long it stays
3 points.
On the licence for 4 years from the date of the offence.
The CU codes are the vehicle's own offences: brakes, tyres and steering under s. 41A RTA 1988 (CU10, CU30, CU40), dangerous condition and dangerous loads under s. 40A (CU20, CU50), and the control-of-vehicle code CU80 alongside. All carry 3 points on the 4-year offence clock, CU80 alone ranging to 6. The arithmetic multiplies before it settles: each defective item is its own offence, so four worn tyres are four charges, though for offences from the same occasion the court normally endorses only the highest points, s. 28 RTOA 1988, unless it decides otherwise. An MOT certificate does not answer any of it, it speaks to the test day, not the roadside. And where a defect is minor, the stop can end in a vehicle defect rectification notice, proof of repair in place of a penalty (gov.uk, checked 2026-07-22). The points arithmetic sits in the penalty points calculator at /fines/penalty-points.
The usual route
A roadside stop can end three ways: the endorsable fixed penalty of 100 pounds and 3 points, a vehicle defect rectification notice where proof of repair replaces the penalty, or a summons where the defect is serious (gov.uk, checked 2026-07-22).
If it goes to court
In court the fine is income-banded at the lower bands, with a higher ceiling for goods vehicles; mechanics in the fine bands guide.
Read next
Guide: Single justice procedure →
Calculator: the code decoder, every code on the official list →
Authority
gov.uk, Penalty points (endorsements), checked 2026-07-22