Emma Watson, 35, slapped with six-month driving BAN and £1,000+ fine following fourth offence in two years
Emma Watson has been banned from driving for six months and ordered to pay £1,044 after being caught speeding in Oxford.
The 35-year-old Harry Potter actress was sentenced at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court today after admitting to driving at 38mph in a 30mph zone.
The offence was captured by a speed camera on Banbury Road in Oxford on July 31 last year.
Watson, who is studying for a doctorate at Oxford University, was driving her £30,000 Audi S3 at the time of the incident.
The court heard that Watson already had nine points on her licence from three previous offences before this latest incident.
This marks Watson’s fourth motoring offence in recent years. The actress did not attend the five-minute hearing but was represented by her lawyer, Mr Wilson, who told the court his client “fully understands and accepts her punishment”.
The court imposed a six-month driving ban after Watson accumulated 12 penalty points with this latest offence.
She was given three additional points for the speeding violation, which pushed her over the threshold for an automatic disqualification.
Watson was charged by post following the incident and pleaded guilty to the offence on March 3 this year.
The magistrates ordered Watson to pay a £650 fine, which was reduced from the original amount after her guilty plea. She must also pay £120 in court costs and a £264 surcharge, bringing the total to £1,044.
Mr Wilson stated in court that Watson “fully understands her position and will accept her punishment”. The hearing lasted just five minutes at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court this morning.
Watson’s ban takes effect immediately, meaning she will be unable to drive legally for the next six months.
The actress, who rose to fame playing Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter film series, has been studying at Oxford University while pursuing her doctorate.
This is not Watson’s first motoring mishap. In February last year, her Audi was impounded by police after she parked illegally outside the Rose and Crown pub in Stratford-upon-Avon.
The car had been left blocking the entrance to a car park, trapping a pizza restaurant manager’s vehicle inside for over three hours. The manager, who had just finished a 12-hour shift, was forced to call police after being unable to locate the car’s owner.
Watson emerged from the pub as the vehicle was being towed, but her appeals were unsuccessful. She was issued a £192 fine for the parking violation.