Drivers using loophole to avoid points

THOUSANDS of motorists are suspected of using a loophole in the law to escape penalty points by claiming a driver with a non-Irish licence was at the wheel.

The Automobile Association said it rejected figures released by the Gardaí recently that suggested one in four drivers who committed a penalty points offence could not be given points because they were foreigners.

AA public affairs manager Conor Faughnan said the truth was more likely that many Irish drivers caught speeding, running red lights or committing other photographed offences were getting friends, acquaintances and workmates with non-Irish licences to claim they were driving instead.