"Reckless Driving" and "Reckless Driving Causing Death" were replaced on 1 July 2000 with "Dangerous Driving" and "Dangerous Driving Causing Death".  With effect from 17 December 2010, a new dangerous driving offence “Dangerous Driving Causing Grievous Bodily Harm”is introduced, and the penalties of dangerous driving offences including “Dangerous Driving” and “Dangerous Driving Causing Death ”are  further increased in order to strengthen the deterrent effect.

What is dangerous driving?

The way one drives creates an obvious and serious risk of causing physical injury to other road users, his passengers or himself, or causing serious damage to property. The way one drives falls far below what is expected of a competent and careful driver, e.g.

	ignore traffic signals
	ignore traffic conditions
	ignore police roadblocks or clear police direction

Examples of dangerous driving

Excessive speeding on roads where

	there are signalized junctions
	there are sharp bends
	there is emerging traffic

Overtaking

	by crossing double white lines at sharp bends
	by crossing double white lines when there are vehicles coming on the opposite lane within a short distance crossing the intersections from other directions

Red light jumping when

	other vehicles have stopped and there are pedestrians crossing the road
	other vehicles have stopped and there are vehicles

The above only serve as examples. Each case will need to be examined on its own, depending on the actual situation including the weather condition, road condition and amount of traffic at the time.

Don't drive dangerously

Don't drive too fast

	observe the speed limit
	match your speed with the traffic flow
	take note of the road and weather conditions

Don't overtake dangerously

	do not overtake unless it is safe to do so
	indicate your intention both before and after the manoeuvre and observe other traffic both behind and ahead of you

Observe police signs

stop if signalled to do so by a police officer or if indicated by a traffic sign

Will 'Driving a Defective Motor Vehicle' constitute 'Dangerous Driving' ? Under the new 'Dangerous Driving' provision, a person is to be regarded as driving dangerously if it would be obvious to a competent and careful driver that driving the motor vehicle concerned in its current state would be dangerous. Do not drive a motor vehicle if it is obvious to you the vehicle is in a defective state, e.g. the braking system fails one or more of the tyres is (are) badly worn out/burst

Safety checks

Driving a defective motor vehicle can cause accidents. Before starting on a journey, you should

	check steering and brakes
	check your tyres
	check whether all the lamps are working
	check whether all loads carried or towed are securely fastened
	check whether your vehicle doors are properly closed

Sudden breakdown

When you are already driving on a road and the car suddenly breaks down,you should

	switch on your hazard warning lights
	get your vehicle out of the main traffic flow if possible with your passengers and yourself off the vehicle in a safe place
	get your vehicle onto any hard shoulder or hard strip if available

Reasonable attempts to avoid traffic accidents would not constitute a 'Dangerous Driving' offence.

Will the fact that a driver suffers from a particular illness alone, such as diabetes or heart disease, and drives be regarded as driving dangerously ?

The answer is 'No'.

A driver must have driven a motor vehicle in an obviously dangerous manner, regardless of his physical condition, if he is to be regarded as driving dangerously.

For protecting his own safety, one should always consider refraining from driving when feeling unwell.

The Penalties

'Dangerous Driving Causing Death' Maximum fine of HK$50,000 and imprisonment for 10 years Disqualification from driving for not less than 2 years on first conviction and not less than 5 years on second or subsequent conviction Mandated to attend a driving improvement course Incur 10 driving offence points  'Dangerous Driving' Maximum fine of HK$25,000 and imprisonment for 3 years Disqualification from driving for not less than 6 months on first conviction and not less than 2 years on second or subsequent conviction Mandated to attend a driving improvement course Incur 10 driving offence points Introduction of “Aggravating Circumstance” in all Dangerous Driving Offences   If at the time of committing dangerous driving offences (including dangerous driving, dangerous driving causing grievous bodily harm or dangerous driving causing death), (a)        the driver's alcohol concentration is Tier 3 (i.e. the alcohol level exceeds 66µg / 150mg / 201mg of alcohol in 100ml of breath / blood / urine respectively); or (b)       any amount of heroin, ketamine, ‘ice’, cannabis, cocaine or MDMA is present in his body, the driver will be caught by aggravating circumstance, and the penalties in terms of fine, imprisonment and minimum disqualification period for the offence concerned will be each increased by 50%.     'Dangerous Driving Causing Grievous Bodily Harm'  Maximum fine of HK$50,000 and imprisonment for 7 years Disqualification from driving for not less than 2 years on first conviction and not less than 5 years on second or subsequent conviction Mandated to attend a driving improvement course Incur 10 driving offence points