Appealing Against an Administrative Decision in Road Traffic Cases – Licence Seizure and Revocation
A decision to seize or revoke a driving licence is a serious interference with a driver’s daily life – both professional and personal. Not every such decision is, however, correct. Administrative authorities make procedural errors, rely on defective measurements or incorrectly calculated penalty points. Every administrative decision can be appealed – the key is acting within the deadline and with the right arguments.
Contents
- Licence seizure for exceeding the speed limit by 50 km/h in a built-up area
- The specific features of decisions with immediate enforceability
- Licence revocation – when and on what basis
- The appeals procedure – deadlines and procedure
- The most common grounds for a successful appeal
- What an appeal should contain
- Practical examples from our caseload
- FAQ
Licence Seizure for Exceeding the Speed Limit by 50 km/h in a Built-Up Area
Under Article 135(1)(1a) of the Road Traffic Act, a police officer seizes a driving licence against a receipt where it is established that the driver exceeded the permitted speed by more than 50 km/h in a built-up area. The receipt entitles the driver to drive for 24 hours from the moment the document is seized.
The seized licence is passed to the district authority (starosta) with jurisdiction over the driver’s place of residence, which issues an administrative decision on the suspension of driving entitlements. This decision is issued as a matter of law – the starosta has no discretion and is required to issue it upon receiving notification of the document’s seizure.
The same procedure applies where a driver is found to be carrying too many passengers in a vehicle.
The Specific Features of Decisions with Immediate Enforceability
The district authority’s decision to seize a driving licence for exceeding the speed limit by more than 50 km/h in a built-up area is immediately enforceable by operation of law – this follows directly from Article 135(1a) of the Road Traffic Act. This means that lodging an appeal does not automatically suspend enforcement. The driver cannot lawfully operate a vehicle from the moment the police seize the licence, even if an appeal has already been lodged and is awaiting consideration.
During the appeals procedure, it is possible to apply to the appellate authority for enforcement of the decision to be stayed, if there are circumstances that justify doing so. This is, however, an exceptional measure and is not applied automatically.
Licence Revocation – When and On What Basis
Licence revocation is a more severe sanction than licence seizure – it requires the driver to pass a state examination again before recovering their entitlements. The Act on Drivers of Vehicles provides for the revocation of entitlements in cases such as the loss of required health or psychological qualifications, exceeding the penalty points limit, or a driving disqualification imposed by a court.
Revocation of entitlements takes place by means of an administrative decision of the district authority and is also subject to appeal.
The Appeals Procedure – Deadlines and Procedure
An appeal against a district authority decision on the seizure or revocation of a driving licence lies to the Regional Administrative Appeals Board (SKO). The appeal is lodged via the district authority that issued the decision – not directly with the SKO.
The deadline for lodging an appeal is 14 days from the date of service of the decision, under Article 129 § 2 of the Code of Administrative Procedure. This deadline is absolute – missing it results in the decision becoming final and makes challenging it in the ordinary appeals procedure virtually impossible. In exceptional cases, an application to restore the deadline may be made if its non-observance occurred without the fault of the party.
An appeal carries no fee. Costs are limited to any legal assistance and obtaining documents to support the arguments made in the appeal.
If the SKO upholds the district authority’s decision, the driver may lodge a complaint with the Provincial Administrative Court, and if necessary a cassation complaint with the Supreme Administrative Court.
The Most Common Grounds for a Successful Appeal
An effective appeal must identify specific deficiencies – general assertions about the unfairness of the decision are not sufficient.
In licence seizure cases for exceeding the speed limit, the grounds for appeal may include: a defective speed measurement – an expired calibration certificate for the measuring device, or incorrect conditions or method of measurement; incorrect identification of the driver – particularly relevant in speed camera cases where the driver’s identity does not follow unambiguously from the evidence; incorrect marking of the built-up area – signs not compliant with regulations, invisible or obscured; acting under necessity; or procedural errors in the decision itself – absence of adequate reasons, breach of the Code of Administrative Procedure.
In licence revocation cases for exceeding the penalty points limit, verifying the correctness of the points calculation is critical. Penalty points are removed from the register after the expiry of a specified period running from the date the relevant decision became final or the fine was paid – the detailed rules are set out in Article 98 of the Act on Drivers of Vehicles. If the authority that issued the decision took into account points that should already have been removed from the register, the decision is defective and subject to being set aside.
What an Appeal Should Contain
An appeal against an administrative decision should contain the party’s identifying details, identification of the appellate authority (SKO) and the authority that issued the challenged decision, the number and date of the challenged decision, a precisely formulated claim – for the decision to be set aside in full or in a specified part – and a statement of reasons containing specific legal and factual arguments. A copy of the challenged decision and documents supporting the arguments raised should be attached.
The tone of the appeal should be matter-of-fact and substantive. An emotional submission or one lacking specific legal arguments has considerably less chance of success than a concise, precise identification of the legal errors or factual mistakes on which the challenged decision rests.
Practical Examples from Our Caseload
A driver from Poznań received a decision seizing his driving licence for exceeding the speed limit by 52 km/h in a built-up area, as recorded by a speed camera. The firm applied for the technical documentation of the device to be disclosed – it emerged that the camera’s calibration certificate had expired before the date of the measurement. The appeal also demonstrated that the road markings indicating the start of the built-up area at the scene were non-compliant with regulations and not visible to a driver approaching from the direction the client had been travelling. The Regional Administrative Appeals Board set aside the district authority’s decision.
A business owner from Wielkopolska received a decision revoking his driving licence after the authority found that the penalty points limit had been exceeded. The firm carried out a detailed analysis of the points register and established that some of the points should have been removed before the decision was issued – the time limits under Article 98 of the Act on Drivers of Vehicles had elapsed before the authority issued its decision, but had not been taken into account. Once the points that should already have been removed were disregarded, the limit had not in fact been exceeded. The SKO set aside the district authority’s decision.
FAQ
Does lodging an appeal suspend enforcement of a licence seizure decision? Not automatically. A decision seizing a driving licence for exceeding the speed limit by more than 50 km/h in a built-up area is immediately enforceable by operation of law. Lodging an appeal does not restore the right to drive. During the appeals procedure it is possible to apply for enforcement to be stayed, but this is an exceptional measure applied in specific circumstances.
What if I missed the 14-day deadline for appeal? In exceptional cases, an application to restore the deadline may be lodged under Article 58 of the Code of Administrative Procedure. The condition is making it plausible that the deadline was missed without the fault of the party – for example due to hospitalisation or inability to access the decision. The application must be submitted within 7 days of the cause of the non-observance ceasing to exist, together with the appeal itself. If the deadline elapsed without the party’s fault, a complaint for reopening of proceedings or a declaration of invalidity of the decision may also be possible, depending on the circumstances.
Can I drive while waiting for my appeal to be decided? No, if the decision is immediately enforceable. Driving despite a driving licence seizure imposed by an administrative decision constitutes a criminal offence under Article 180a of the Criminal Code.
Does licence revocation mean I have to retake the test from scratch? Yes. Revocation of driving entitlements means that a state examination – both theory and practical – must be passed again before the driving licence is recovered. This is an important distinction from a licence seizure, after which the driver recovers the document without an examination (provided the disqualification did not last more than one year).
Contact Us
You have only 14 days from service of an administrative decision to lodge an appeal – this deadline is absolute and will not wait.
It pays to be properly prepared: both in knowing what you can claim and in having a clear strategy.
We handle cases for drivers in Poznań and across the Wielkopolska region, with in-person and online consultations available for clients elsewhere in Poland.
Adwokat Marta Krzyżanowicz and Adwokat Michalina Koligot Law Firm “Adwokat dla Kierowców w Poznaniu”
ul. Adama Mickiewicza 18/3, 60-834 Poznań
tel. +48 795 001 536 · +48 531 335 713
kontakt@adwokatdlakierowcy.pl · www.adwokatdlakierowcy.pl
This text is for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every case requires individual analysis.