Finepost · Fines · Codes · DR10
DR10 : driving or attempting to drive with alcohol level above limit
Checked 17 July 2026 · How we check our figures
What it means
DR10 is the code most people never see written down, because its usual form is not points but a ban. The 3 to 11 in the table is the exception's arithmetic, endorsed only where special reasons spare the disqualification. Two clocks make it the heaviest entry of this table: the ban itself, and 11 years on the record running from conviction, not from the night in question. The family note carries the 11-year mechanics; the drink driving guide carries the table of bans.
Points and how long it stays
3 to 11 points.
On the licence for 11 years from the date of conviction.
The DR family is the 11-year shelf of the endorsement system, but only half of it sits there. DR10, DR20, DR30, DR31 and DR61 stay on the record for 11 years from conviction, not from the offence, though third parties such as insurers can see an 11-year code only through its first 5 years, where a 4-year code shows throughout (gov.uk, checked 2026-07-22). The in-charge and roadside codes, DR40, DR50, DR60 and DR70, run on the ordinary 4-year clock from the offence, or from conviction where a court disqualifies (gov.uk, checked 2026-07-22). The driving variants carry a mandatory ban of 12 months or more, 3 years for a second drink offence inside 10, so their points column is mostly theoretical; the others carry fixed points instead, 10 for the in-charge entries and 4 for the roadside test. High readings, refusals and a second drink-related disqualification inside 10 years add the high risk offender scheme, where the licence returns only after the DVLA is medically satisfied. The tables, the course that shortens the ban and the courtroom mechanics sit in the drink driving guide at /fines/guides/drink-driving.
The usual route
There is no fixed penalty route; the charge goes to a courtroom in person, as the drink driving guide sets out.
If it goes to court
The usual outcome is the mandatory ban of 12 months or more, banded by the reading, as the drink driving guide sets out; the 3 to 11 points appear only in the rare special reasons case where the ban is spared.
Read next
Calculator: the code decoder, every code on the official list →
Authority
gov.uk, Penalty points (endorsements), checked 2026-07-17