Queensland has recently rewritten its dangerous driving laws. On 17 September 2026, State Parliament passed the Criminal Code (Dangerous Driving) and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2026 (Qld), and it received Royal Assent on 21 September 2026. The Act repeals the existing offence of dangerous operation of a vehicle (s 328A of the Criminal Code) and replaces it with a new four-part framework.

The headline changes are higher maximum penalties and wider mandatory imprisonment. Where dangerous driving causes death or grievous bodily harm, the maximum rises from 14 to 16 years’ imprisonment, and from 20 to 25 years where circumstances of aggravation are present. Mandatory imprisonment and minimum licence disqualifications are expanded for serious and repeat offenders.

A companion Act, the Transport and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2026 (Qld), received assent the same day. It doubles drug driving penalties and introduces immediate licence suspensions for extreme speeding.

These are not traffic matters. Dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm is one of the most serious charges regularly heard in the District Court of Queensland. This article explains what has changed, how these cases are proven, and where the defence battlegrounds lie.

What Parliament Passed

A new four-category framework

The Bill was introduced on 26 June 2026 by the Attorney-General and examined by the State Development, Infrastructure and Works Committee before passing in September. It inserts a new chapter 29B into the Criminal Code, with four offences:

1. Driving motor vehicles dangerously (s 334I): cars, trucks, buses and motorcycles.
2. Interfering dangerously with the driving of motor vehicles (s 334J): conduct by another person that endangers a vehicle’s safe operation.
3. Operating non-motor vehicles dangerously (s 334K): including bicycles, skateboards, trains and vessels.
4. Interfering dangerously with the operation of non-motor vehicles (s 334L).

According to the explanatory notes, the reforms do not change how the Criminal Code treats the dangerous use of e-mobility devices such as e-scooters and e-bikes. Separate e-mobility reforms have been rolling out under other legislation during 2026.

What “dangerously” now means

For the first time, the Criminal Code defines what it means to drive or operate a vehicle “dangerously” (s 334H). Driving is dangerous if it is dangerous to the public, or to a person in or on the vehicle other than the driver, having regard to all the circumstances, including:

• the nature, condition and use of the place;
• the nature and condition of the vehicle;
• the speed of the vehicle;
• the number of people, vehicles or other objects that are, or might reasonably be expected to be, in the place;
• the concentration of alcohol in the driver’s blood, breath or urine; and
• the presence of a drug in the driver’s saliva, blood or urine.

Higher maximum penalties

For the motor vehicle offence under s 334I, the maximum penalties are:

Circumstance	Former maximum (s 328A)	New maximum (s 334I)
Dangerous driving, no death or GBH	3 years (5 years if aggravated)	5 years (7 years if aggravated)
Dangerous driving causing death or GBH	14 years (20 years if aggravated)	16 years (25 years if aggravated)

The higher maximum applies where a circumstance of aggravation is proven. Under s 334I(4), these include that at the time of the offence the driver was:

• under the influence of alcohol or a drug, over the high alcohol limit, or had a relevant drug present in their blood or saliva;
• more than 40 km/h over the speed limit, or taking part in an unlawful race or speed trial;
• disqualified from holding a licence, or driving while their licence was suspended;
• previously convicted of specified dangerous or drink/drug driving offences within the previous five years;
• leaving the scene, knowing or where they ought reasonably to know someone had been killed or injured, before police arrived (other than to get help); or
• evading police.

A separate aggravation applies where the offender posts about the offence on social media to advertise it. That lifts the basic offence to 7 years, but it does not by itself trigger the 25-year maximum for death or grievous bodily harm.

Mandatory imprisonment and disqualification

Under s 334I(5), the court must impose imprisonment as the whole or part of the punishment where the offender has:

• a previous conviction for dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm, or for aggravated police evasion; or
• more than one previous conviction for basic dangerous driving, an indictable driving offence, or specified drink or drug driving offences.

Licence disqualification is also compulsory on every conviction under s 334I, whatever other sentence is imposed (s 334M). The minimum periods depend on the offence and the offender’s history. For example, the minimum is 6 months for a first basic offence, 2 years for a first aggravated offence causing death or grievous bodily harm, and up to 5 years for a repeat aggravated offender. The court can also disqualify absolutely.

Why It Matters Legally

The penalty ceiling has moved

A 25-year maximum places aggravated dangerous driving causing death alongside some of the most serious offences in the Criminal Code. Maximum penalties signal to sentencing courts how seriously Parliament regards the offending. When a maximum rises, sentences across the range tend to follow over time, not only at the top.

The new provisions also carry through the wider system. Dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm is added to the list of serious violent offences in the Penalties and Sentences Act 1992 (Qld), and the District Court keeps jurisdiction to hear these matters despite the higher maxima.

Discretion is narrowing

In the cases covered by s 334I(5), the court no longer has the option of a sentence that involves no imprisonment at all. Shadow Transport Minister Bart Mellish argued in debate that the reforms use road safety to justify measures unsupported by evidence that remove judicial discretion. The Government maintains the changes are a necessary response to rising road trauma.

Whatever view one takes, the practical consequence is clear. When the sentencing outcome is more constrained, the fight moves to whether the charge can be proven at all, and which charge is proven.

How Dangerous Driving Is Proven

This is where serious driving matters are won and lost. The prosecution must generally establish the following.

1. The driving was “dangerous”

Dangerousness is assessed objectively against the statutory factors in s 334H. The question is not whether the driver meant to be dangerous or realised the risk, but whether the driving in fact created a real danger to others.

The courts have long drawn this line. In McBride v The Queen (1966) 115 CLR 44, the High Court described dangerous driving as a manner of driving that is, in a real sense, potentially dangerous to others. The High Court confirmed that approach in King v The Queen (2012) 245 CLR 588, holding that dangerous driving is concerned with risk, not with degrees of negligence. Those cases concerned New South Wales legislation, but they remain influential in interpreting similar provisions.

The line between careless driving (a lesser traffic offence) and dangerous driving (a criminal offence) is often the most important question in the case. A momentary lapse of attention does not automatically amount to dangerous driving.

2. The driving caused the death or injury

For the offences involving death or grievous bodily harm, the prosecution must prove that the dangerous driving caused the death or injury. Being involved in a fatal crash is not enough. The Act does not define causation, so the ordinary criminal law principles apply.

Causation is contested where:

• another road user contributed to the collision;
• road design, surface or lighting played a role;
• a mechanical failure occurred; or
• the injuries have more than one possible cause.

3. The circumstances of aggravation

Allegations of intoxication, excessive speed, evading police, leaving the scene or prior convictions carry the higher maximum penalties and must be proven beyond reasonable doubt. Blood and breath testing procedures, the chain of custody for samples, speed estimates and police pursuit records are all open to scrutiny.

4. Defences

The Criminal Code’s general excuses continue to apply to the new offences. The most relevant are:

• Acts independent of the will (s 23(1)(a)). A sudden medical episode, such as a seizure or loss of consciousness, can mean the driving was not a willed act. Whether a known condition makes driving itself dangerous is often the real issue.
• Accident (s 23(1)(b)). A person is not criminally responsible for an event they did not intend or foresee as a possible consequence, and that an ordinary person would not reasonably have foreseen.
• Honest and reasonable mistake of fact (s 24). For example, a genuine and reasonable belief about the condition of the vehicle.

The evidence that decides these cases

Forensic crash reconstruction, vehicle event data recorders (“black boxes”), telematics, phone records, CCTV and dashcam footage, and independent expert evidence frequently determine the outcome. Police reconstruction is not the last word. A properly briefed independent expert can reach a materially different view on speed, point of impact or cause. We leave no stone unturned.

Who This Affects and How

Drivers involved in serious crashes. Anyone involved in a collision causing death or serious injury after commencement faces charges under the new regime. The period immediately after a crash, including any police interview, is critical. Anyone in that position should obtain legal advice before participating in an interview.

Drivers with a record. Past convictions under the old s 328A count as prior convictions under the new provisions. A driver with an old dangerous driving conviction can face the higher maximum, mandatory imprisonment and longer disqualification for a new offence committed after commencement.

People who “interfere” with a vehicle. The interference offences reach passengers, pedestrians and others whose conduct endangers a vehicle’s safe operation.

Operators of non-motor vehicles. Cyclists, skateboarders and vessel operators fall within an express offence framework, with maximum penalties of up to 14 years (20 years if aggravated) where death or grievous bodily harm is caused.

Drivers using prescribed medicinal cannabis. Under the companion Transport Act, drug driving penalties double from 1 December 2026 through higher fines and longer disqualifications. The Government has maintained zero tolerance for drug driving, including for drivers using prescribed medicinal cannabis. The Alcohol and Drug Foundation has raised concern about the impact on people lawfully taking their prescriptions.

Extreme speeders. Under the Transport Act, drivers detected more than 40 km/h over the limit face an immediate six-month licence suspension.

The Queensland Dimension

These laws apply only in Queensland. Every Australian state and territory has its own dangerous driving offences, and penalty structures differ materially between jurisdictions. Interstate sentencing outcomes should not be treated as a guide to Queensland outcomes.

The reforms sit within a broader Government program targeting road trauma and repeat offending. Further changes are scheduled for 2027, including streamlined roadside drug testing.

It is another example of this Governments determination to remove judicial discretion wherever possible, in effect eroding the separation of the executive and judicial branches.

What to Watch Next

• The new offences commence on 1 March 2027. Until then, the existing s 328A continues to apply.
• Transitional provisions. Offences committed before commencement continue to be prosecuted and sentenced under the former law, even if the charge is laid after 1 March 2027. The date of the alleged offence, not the date of the charge, determines which regime applies. Each case must be checked against its own dates.
• Early sentencing decisions. Watch for the Court of Appeal’s first decisions under the new maxima. They will set the benchmarks.

Key Takeaways

• Queensland’s dangerous driving offence (s 328A) is replaced by a four-category framework covering motor and non-motor vehicles, commencing 1 March 2027.
• For dangerous driving causing death or grievous bodily harm, the maximum rises from 14 to 16 years, and from 20 to 25 years where aggravating circumstances apply.
• “Dangerously” is now defined in the Criminal Code.
• Mandatory imprisonment applies to specified repeat and serious offenders, and licence disqualification is compulsory on every conviction.
• Old s 328A convictions count as priors under the new law.
• Drug driving penalties double from 1 December 2026, including for drivers using prescribed medicinal cannabis.

Conclusion

Queensland’s dangerous driving laws are now among the toughest in the country. A 25-year maximum, expanded mandatory imprisonment and compulsory disqualification mean a single moment on the road can reshape the rest of a person’s life. As the discretion available at sentence narrows, the evidence becomes everything: whether the driving was truly dangerous, what caused the collision, and what the prosecution can actually prove.

If you or someone close to you is facing a serious driving charge, the time to act is before the police interview and before the first court date. Jones + Associates builds its defences on evidence. Speak with our team or call 07 3229 3166.