Driving licence points: do you know how many you have left? We explain how to recover them

On 1 July it will be eight years since the points-based driving licence came into force. At first, all drivers had twelve points, which could be deducted depending on the seriousness of the offences committed. Shortly afterwards, this figure was increased by three extra points for drivers who had not received any penalty during that time. New drivers, on the other hand, started with 8 points.

The number of points deducted from the licence varies with the penalty. The loss of points is linked to the financial fine, and several points may be deducted, reducing the total until all of them are gone, so that accumulating penalties can lead to losing the driving licence.

To check how many points remain on the licence, the DGT has set up a section on its website where you can check them by accessing it. Once you have checked, you should know that points can be recovered in several ways. The most common is not committing further offences for a period of time: if two years pass without a new offence being committed, the balance returns to its original state, with the twelve points.

There are, however, other ways to recover lost points. The DGT has prepared special road awareness and re-education courses lasting twelve hours, which are taught at approved centres. The price is usually around 200 euros, and once the course has been passed it is reported to the DGT, which will restore the points lost, up to a maximum of six.

But be careful: this course can only be taken every two years, although professionals may take it once a year. Another situation that can arise is losing all the points, in which case the driving licence will be withdrawn. To get the licence back, you must wait six months.

Once this period has passed, a 24-hour course must be completed, normally offered over four days at six hours a day. The price is about 400 euros, and after completing it a multiple-choice exam must be taken. If you fail, there is the possibility of taking another course of four hours in order to sit the exam again.

If you fail, you can take up to two more courses. After the third failure, the complete course must be taken to obtain the licence as if it were new. These courses cost about 125 euros. In this way, lost points can be recovered and, with a little patience, you can have your licence back with all the points you need to drive without setbacks.