Court fine calculator
A fine in the magistrates’ court is not a fixed amount. It is a share of your weekly take-home pay, set by how serious the offence is. The court then takes off up to a third if you plead guilty early, and adds a victim surcharge and costs.
Choose the offence and put in your figures for an estimate of the total. Nothing you type leaves this page.
The fine is only part of it. For the points, and whether you could be banned, check your offence.
How the court works out a fine
1. The band. Each offence has a guideline that says which band the court starts from. More serious cases move up a band. Each band is a percentage of your weekly take-home pay:
| Band | Starting point | Range |
|---|---|---|
| A | 50% of a week’s pay | 25% to 75% |
| B | 100% | 75% to 125% |
| C | 150% | 125% to 175% |
| D | 250% | 200% to 300% |
| E | 400% | 300% to 500% |
| F | 600% | 500% to 700% |
2. Your income. The court uses your weekly pay after tax and National Insurance. If you are on benefits, or take home £120 a week or less, it uses £120. If you do not tell it anything, it assumes £440 a week.
3. The legal maximum. Some offences have a ceiling. Speeding and using a phone are capped at £1,000 (£2,500 on a motorway, or in a lorry or bus). Others, such as drink driving and driving without insurance, have no upper limit.
4. Your plea. Pleading guilty at the first opportunity takes up to a third off the fine. Pleading guilty later gets less off. Pleading guilty never reduces penalty points or a ban.
5. What is added. A victim surcharge of 40% of the fine (up to £2,000), and a contribution to the prosecution’s costs. The calculator uses £95, a typical figure on an early guilty plea; the court sets the actual amount.
The court can move away from these figures where the facts justify it, and it can let you pay in instalments.
Common questions
How do magistrates work out a fine?
They decide which band the offence falls into, from A to F, and apply it to your weekly take-home pay. Band A starts at half a week's pay, Band B at a week's, Band C at one and a half weeks'. Then they take off up to a third for an early guilty plea, and add a victim surcharge and prosecution costs.
What if I don't tell the court my income?
The court assumes you take home £440 a week, which may be more than you actually earn. Sending in your financial details usually matters more than anything else you can do about the size of the fine.
What if I am on benefits?
The court treats your income as £120 a week, whatever the exact figure. The same applies if you take home £120 a week or less.
What is the victim surcharge?
An extra amount added to every fine, which pays for services for victims of crime. For an adult it is 40% of the fine, up to a maximum of £2,000.
Can I pay a court fine in instalments?
Yes. You can ask the court for time to pay, or to pay weekly or monthly. Tell the court what you can realistically afford when you send in your financial details or at the hearing.
Sources: Sentencing Council, explanatory material on the approach to fines and Reduction in sentence for a guilty plea; Criminal Justice Act 2003 (Surcharge) Order, as amended by SI 2022/584; the Sentencing Council guideline for each offence listed. This page is information about the law in England and Wales, not legal advice on your case. Law stated as at 24 September 2026.