Uber Driver with worst speeding history magistrate has seen allowed to keep licence

Uber driver, Michael Lederman, 65, has the worst speeding history a magistrate has ever seen yet has been allowed to keep his licence.

Lederman created four fake identities in attempt to avoid paying any speeding fines. He signed statutory declarations claiming that 'those drivers' were responsible for the speeding, when he got his total of nine speeding notices and one infringement for failing to stop at a red light.

Police prosecutor Sergeant Tara Williams said authorities exerted a lot of effort and spent a long period of time tracing the fabricated driver identities – having to check with Births, Deaths and Marriages, Department of Home Affairs, Victorian Police and State Penalty Enforcement Register.

Lederman pleaded guilty in Brisbane Magistrates Court last Friday to 10 fraud charges and 10 charges of making false declarations, between 2016 and 2020.

Magistrate Athol Kennedy said he had been a magistrate for a long time and Lederman had the worst speeding history he ever bore witness to. At one stage, in September last year, Lederman had been caught speeding almost on the daily. He is claimed to have committed most of the fraudulent offences to avoid paying a $150 fine and any point losses on his licence, when he could have avoided these entirely by just not speeding.

Sgt. Williams asked the magistrate to give Lederman a 12-months-suspended jail term and disqualify him from driving.

Lederman was highly educated and had a number of professional jobs in the past, but ultimately found Uber driving to be what he really liked, Lederman’s defence lawyer said. A psychologist’s report indicated that Lederman feared he would lose the lifestyle of being a Uber driver, being his own boss. 

Mr Kennedy sentenced Lederman to six months’ jail, immediately suspended for 15 months, and ordered him to be on probation for 15 months. The convictions would be recorded, however, Lederman would not be disqualified from driving in order to give him the future chance in continuing as an Uber driver.

Lederman is under a good driver behaviour period, after loss of demerit points (he will lose his licence if he loses a point before September 2021). He had his licence suspended twice, but had it reinstated after appeals.