(1)A person shall not drive a vehicle in a manner (including speed) which having regard to all the circumstances of the case (including the condition of the vehicle, the nature, in which it is driven and the amount of traffic which then actually is or might reasonably be expected then to be in it) is or is likely to be dangerous to the public.

(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) commits an offence and -

(a) in case the contravention causes death or serious bodily harm to another person, he or she is liable on conviction on indictment to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or to a fine not exceeding €20,000 or to both, and

(b) in any other case, he or she is liable on summary conviction to a class A fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both.

(3) In a prosecution for an offence under this section or section 52, it is not a defence to show that the speed at which the accused person was driving was not in excess of a speed limit applying in relation to the vehicle or the road, whichever is the lower, under Part 2 of the Road Traffic Act 2004.

(4) Where, when a person is tried on indictment or summarily for an offence under this section, the jury, or, in the case of a summary trial, the District Court, is of the opinion that he or she had not committed an offence under this section but had committed an offence under section 52, the jury or court may find him or her guilty of an offence under section 52, and he or she may be sentenced accordingly.