MORE than 170 drivers in Hampshire are still on the road despite having enough points to rack up a ban, figures show.

In figures obtained in a Freedom of Information Request to the DVLA, over 173 drivers across the county are still driving on the roads legally despite amassing a significant quantity of points.

Only last week one driver in Hampshire with 27 points on his licence was pulled by police in Totton for using a mobile phone while driving.

Under the law, drivers who have 12 penalty points can be banned from driving for up to six months by a court however an exception can be made if the defendant can prove to the magistrate that losing their licence will cause ‘’exceptional hardship”, but job loss isn’t included in this exception.

The data showed that Greater London was the worst area with 1,385 drivers who qualified for the ban while 900 drivers across the South were still driving with more than 12 points.

Across the country, according to the statistics 10,000 motorists are driving while having more than enough points to have received a ban.

David Nichols, from Road Safety Charity Brake, said: “This makes a mockery of our penalty points system that exists to protect the public from selfish and dangerous repeat offenders.

"We feel the Hampshire driver with 27 points on their licence should be taken off the road before he takes someone else off the road.

“Brake is calling on the government to ensure all drivers, including the 173 in Hampshire, with more than 12 points to get an automatic ban."

Steve Brine, Conservative MP for Winchester said: "This is unacceptable and puts innocent people's lives at risk.

"Clearly there's an enforcement issue here so I would urge those behind this research to take what they have to the Hampshire Constabulary."

Despite the findings, Sheena Jowett, deputy Chairman of the Magistrates Association, an independent charity representing magistrates across the country defended the decision that magistrates make when deciding whether to punish offenders.

She said: “Magistrates take decisions under clear guidelines, impartially, and on the merits of each individual case.

"Automatic disqualification can be avoided or reduced in cases of ‘exceptional hardship, the process is a robust one and the concept of hardship must be proved to an exceptional level.”

It follows new laws that were introduced on March 1 for using mobile phones while driving which doubled the number of penalties and fines for offenders from three to six points and from £100 to £200 in a police crackdown to reduce the total number of accidents.