Loophole allowing drivers to reduce six months' disqualification to 24 hours has been closed

Penalty points were meant to act as a deterrent from illegal driving behaviours, because drivers risk being disqualified for six months if they accumulate enough penalty points. Picture Colin Keegan/ Collins 

A legal loophole which allowed drivers to reduce a six-month disqualification to as little as 24 hours off the road has been closed.

A six-month disqualification is usually imposed on drivers who accumulate 12 penalty points. However, a section in the Road Traffic Act allowed some to avoid this through what is known as an ancillary disqualification.