NSW drivers who keep a squeaky clean record for one year will be able to have one previous demerit point scrubbed from their licence under new legislation passed in parliament this week.
Under the reform of the state’s demerit point system, drivers who do not accrue any demerit points between January 17, 2023 and January 17, 2024 will be eligible to have a previously earned point wiped from their record.
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It normally takes three years for demerit points to expire.
The government hopes the trial, which was passed on Wednesday, will benefit more than 1.7 million drivers by encouraging safer behaviour on NSW roads.
The trial applies to full-licence holders only, meaning learner and provisional licence holders miss out.
Eligible drivers can expect to see one demerit removed from mid-April 2024, given driving offences take about three months to be finalised.
Roads Minister John Graham said the government was “trialling something new, the carrot and the stick”.
“The demerit trial is an important carrot for drivers to remain offence-free over a 12-month period and we will closely watch the results to see if there is a net safety benefit for motorists, pedestrians, and communities,” Graham said.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said it was about encouraging drivers to do the right thing by adding an incentive into the licence system “rather than only relying on deterrents and demerits to get the road safety message through”.
“Reducing the road toll and rewarding safe driving across the state is the aim of this trial and I am pleased the parliament agreed, with bipartisan support,” he said.
“It’s time we put safety back at the centre of our road rules, not revenue-raising.”
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