How to read an AARTO infringement notice
A practical field guide so you enter the right charge into the calculator — and do not confuse the money columns with demerit points.
This is an educational walkthrough of common notice fields. Layouts vary by issuing authority. Always treat the paper or portal notice in your hand as authoritative. DemeritCheck does not store or process your notice number, ID, or personal details.
Start with the charge code
Schedule 3 demerit values are keyed to a charge code, not to whatever short label someone used in conversation (“I got a stop-street ticket”). Two notices that sound alike can carry different codes and different points. On DemeritCheck, search by the code printed on the notice first; use wording search only to narrow candidates, then confirm the code.
Charge / offence code
Usually a numeric Schedule 3 code (for example 5085 or 4201). This is what column 6 ties demerit points to. Enter this in the calculator or look it up in the offence table.
Wording / description
The published charge text. Match it to Schedule 3 wording; do not assume a synonym on a news site lists the same points.
Infringement notice number
A long reference used for payment and queries on official channels. DemeritCheck never asks for it and cannot pay or clear anything against it.
Dates / service
Issued and service-related dates matter for administrative windows (pay, nominate, represent). See options after you receive a notice. They do not change the Schedule 3 point value of the code itself.
Penalty / amount due
The money side. Separate from demerit points. Fine vs demerit points →DemeritCheck does not calculate payable rands.
Vehicle / driver particulars
Used by authorities to identify who must respond. If you were not the driver, nomination processes may apply — that is an official-forms question, not something this calculator decides.
Code first, story second
Example: “phone at a stop street” might involve a handheld-phone code (such as 5085, 3 points) and a stop-sign code (such as 4201, 3 points) — or only one of them, depending on what was written up. The calculator can model both; guessing from a anecdote cannot.
Pending vs final when you type it in
- Still within payment / representation / nomination process → mark Pending (0 toward total).
- Matter concluded as final against you for modelling purposes → mark Final.
- Unsure → leave Pending.
Until AARTO Act sections 24–28 are proclaimed, no live demerit register is applying these totals to licences. Status brief →
What the notice will not tell you today
- Your “official demerit balance” on eNaTIS (demerit enforcement not proclaimed as of our last verify)
- Whether DemeritCheck is affiliated with RTIA (it is not)
- Whether you “should” pay or contest — that needs official channels or a qualified attorney
Open calculator → · Notice options guide → · Search offences → · What we cannot do →