Arrested on holiday, stopped at a roadside check, or summoned to court while living on the Costa Blanca. We defend British clients in Benidorm in English, from the police station through to trial and appeal.
Spanish criminal proceedings move fast. Many cases that begin with a night in custody in Benidorm are tried within days under the fast-track procedure of Articles 795 to 803 of the Criminal Procedure Act. What you say, and what you sign, in those first hours shapes everything that follows.
In brief. Criminal defence lawyer in Benidorm for British clients: arrest rights under Article 520, fast-track trials, drink-driving, assault, theft and fraud cases.
Benidorm holds the largest concentration of British visitors and British residents on the Costa Blanca. A permanent expatriate population in Rincon de Loix and the old town, and a night-time economy running from Easter to late autumn, mean much of the criminal work in this part of the province involves people who speak no Spanish and do not know how the system works.
Most cases we are called about are not complicated in law: bar-front scuffles, a breath test after a meal, a hire car or scooter driven without the right licence, a missing wallet, a card used by someone who should not have had it. What makes them serious is speed. A client who has never been arrested is asked to make a statement, in a language he does not speak, about an incident he barely remembers, and is before a judge within seventy-two hours.
Benidorm is the head of its own judicial district within the province of Alicante. Following Organic Law 1/2025, investigation and first-instance trial are integrated into the Court of First Instance for the district, which has an Investigation Section and a Criminal Section. Serious offences and appeals go to the Provincial Court of Alicante, with further appeal to the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community and, where the law allows, to the Supreme Court.
Our offices are in Alicante, at Playa de San Juan, and in Madrid, and we travel to Benidorm for police stations, hearings and trials. Elsewhere on the coast we act in Torrevieja, Denia and Javea and Orihuela Costa.
These charges dominate the list in this judicial district during the season. Each is defined in the Criminal Code and each takes a different route through the courts.
A punch outside a bar falls under Article 147 if the injury needed medical or surgical treatment beyond first aid; if not, it is a minor offence. Article 148 raises the penalty where a weapon is used, and Article 152 covers injury caused by recklessness.
Where several people fight in a confused melee using instruments dangerous to life or health, everyone who took part can be convicted even if it cannot be proved who struck whom. Group incidents outside clubs are often charged this way.
Acting as part of a group to disturb public peace by damaging property, obstructing the highway or invading premises. It is frequently added to an assault charge after a disturbance in a bar or hotel, and carries its own penalty.
Struggling with or striking a National Police or Local Police officer during an arrest falls under Article 550. Refusing to obey, or pulling away without violence, is resistance or serious disobedience under Article 556. Both are treated far more seriously here than British clients expect.
Driving with more than 0.60 mg of alcohol per litre of exhaled air, or 1.2 g per litre in blood, is a criminal offence under Article 379.2, not a fine. The same article covers extreme speeding, and Article 385 creating a serious risk on the road.
Refusing to provide a specimen carries a heavier penalty than most drink-driving convictions, and is prosecuted even if you would have been under the limit. Article 384 covers driving after a ban, after losing all licence points, or having never held a licence. Hire cars, mopeds and rented scooters count.
Possession for your own use is not a criminal offence, though possession in public is an administrative matter under the public safety legislation. Genuine shared consumption among users, privately and without profit, also falls outside Article 368. Street dealing does not.
Theft under Article 234 turns on a threshold of 400 euros: below it the case is a minor offence punished by a fine, above it a full offence with a custodial range. Force against property makes it robbery under Articles 237 to 241; violence or intimidation makes it robbery under Article 242.
Article 248 defines fraud as deception causing another to part with property to his detriment; Article 250 lists what aggravates it. Card cases are separate: counterfeiting a payment card under Article 399 bis 1, knowingly using a forged card under Article 399 bis 3.
These are the statutory ranges. The sentence imposed depends on participation, whether the offence was completed, and the mitigating and aggravating circumstances of the defendant.
| Offence | Article | Statutory penalty | Usual route |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodily harm requiring medical treatment | Art. 147.1 CP | 3 months to 3 years, or a fine of 6 to 12 months | Fast-track trial |
| Affray | Art. 154 CP | 3 months to 1 year, or a fine of 6 to 24 months | Fast-track trial |
| Public disorder | Art. 557 CP | 6 months to 3 years | Fast-track or ordinary proceedings |
| Assault on an agent of authority | Art. 550.2 CP | 6 months to 3 years | Fast-track trial |
| Resistance or serious disobedience | Art. 556 CP | 3 months to 1 year, or a fine of 6 to 18 months | Fast-track trial |
| Driving above 0.60 mg/l of alcohol in exhaled air | Art. 379.2 CP | 3 to 6 months, or a fine of 6 to 12 months, or 31 to 90 days of community work, plus a driving ban of 1 to 4 years | Fast-track trial |
| Refusing to provide a breath specimen | Art. 383 CP | 6 months to 1 year, plus a driving ban of 1 to 4 years | Fast-track trial |
| Theft | Art. 234 CP | A fine of 1 to 3 months below 400 euros; 6 to 18 months above that figure | Minor-offence or fast-track trial |
Two points matter to British defendants. A custodial sentence of up to two years imposed on someone with no previous convictions in Spain may be suspended under Article 80, usually on conditions. And where the person convicted is a foreign national not lawfully resident in Spain, Article 89 allows a prison sentence of more than one year to be replaced by expulsion. Neither is automatic and neither can be promised in advance.
A person arrested must be released or brought before a judge as soon as the enquiries are complete, and within seventy-two hours at the latest. For a straightforward Benidorm incident it is usually far shorter: most clients go before the duty court the following morning.
Article 520 sets out your rights from the moment of detention. You must be told in writing, in a language you understand, what you are accused of and why. You have the right to silence, the right not to incriminate yourself, the right to have someone informed of your detention and where you are held, the right to see a doctor, and the right to consult the file so far as is needed to challenge it.
Two rights are decisive: a confidential interview with your lawyer before you make any statement, and a free interpreter throughout, including during that interview. Use both before you say anything. A statement given at four in the morning, through a tired interpreter, after a night in a cell, is the commonest reason a defensible case stops being one. See our guide to arrest and police custody rights in Spain.
Article 520 gives you a private consultation with your lawyer before questioning. It is the only moment, before the file hardens, in which you can explain what happened without it being written down against you.
Interpretation and translation of the essential documents are free and are not a favour. If the interpretation is poor, or the interpreter absent for part of the procedure, that must be recorded at the time.
You may ask for the British consular authorities to be told of your arrest and where you are held, and you may communicate with them.
Declining to answer questions at the police station is not evidence of guilt and cannot be treated as such. Preparing a statement for the court, once the file has been read, is usually better.
Most Benidorm cases follow the fast-track route of Articles 795 to 803, designed for offences that are recent, simple and often caught in the act.
You are held while the urgent enquiries are carried out, with your Article 520 rights applying from the first minute. The file that reaches the court is built here: the arresting officers report, the breath test printout, the medical report, witness accounts and the custody record.
You are brought before the Investigation Section of the Court of First Instance for the Benidorm judicial district. The judge takes the urgent steps required by Article 797, hears your statement if you choose to give one, rules on bail or conditions, and decides whether the case suits the fast-track procedure. If it does, the prosecutor files the accusation at once.
Article 801 lets a defendant plead guilty before the duty court and have the agreed sentence cut by one third, within the limits the article sets. It is quick and can be the right answer. It is also, once sentence is passed, effectively irrevocable: you cannot appeal because you changed your mind. It should never be accepted without the file having been read.
If there is no plea the case is tried by the Criminal Section of the Court of First Instance, or by the Provincial Court of Alicante where the offence is serious enough. Appeal lies to the Provincial Court of Alicante, then to the High Court of Justice of the Valencian Community and, where the law allows, on points of law to the Supreme Court.
You have days, not weeks. The priority is a lawyer at the police station before any statement, a proper reading of the file at the duty court, and an honest view on whether the fast-track plea serves you or merely suits everyone else.
If you live here, a conviction outlasts the case: a driving ban affecting your work, a criminal record certificate, conditions attached to a suspended sentence. These are worth fighting properly rather than closing quickly.
A case does not disappear because you have left Spain. You may be represented by a lawyer and, where required, a court representative, and you must give an address for service. Article 786 allows a trial in the absence of a properly summoned defendant, within the limits it sets. Ignoring a summons risks a warrant and default.
Relatives are often the first to make contact, before the detained person has called anyone. We can confirm where someone is held, arrange attendance and explain what happens next, within the limits of what we may disclose to a third party.
How criminal defence fees are set and what a defence normally costs.
The drink-driving offence in Spain and the penalties it carries.
What happens after an arrest in Spain and the rights you can exercise in custody.
You are held while the police complete their urgent enquiries, and must be released or brought before a judge within seventy-two hours; in practice it is usually the next morning. Article 520 gives you the right to be told the accusation in a language you understand, a confidential interview with your lawyer before questioning, a free interpreter, a doctor, and notification of a relative and of the British consular authorities. Do not give a statement before you have used the interview and the interpreter.
Articles 795 to 803 create a fast-track procedure for offences that are recent, straightforward and often caught in the act, which describes much of the Benidorm caseload. The duty court takes the urgent steps under Article 797, the prosecutor accuses immediately, and the case can reach trial within days. The speed does not mean the case is trivial; it means you have very little time to prepare.
Sometimes, and only once the file has been read. Article 801 allows a guilty plea before the duty court with the agreed sentence cut by one third, within the limits the article sets. Where the evidence is overwhelming and the sentence can be suspended, it may be the best outcome available. But judgment is given on the spot and is effectively irrevocable: you cannot appeal later because you regret it.
It can. You must give an address for service and you may be represented by a lawyer and, where the procedure requires one, a court representative. Article 786 allows a trial to proceed in the absence of a properly summoned defendant where the penalty sought falls within the limits it sets and the court finds enough material. Appearance by videoconference is possible where the court agrees. Ignoring a summons risks a warrant and a declaration of default, so tell your lawyer your travel dates before booking.
A duty lawyer is appointed automatically if you name nobody, and the service is free where your means fall within the legal aid thresholds. Either way you keep the right to appoint a lawyer of your choice at any stage, including after a duty lawyer has acted. The incoming lawyer requests the customary professional authority from the outgoing one and the court is notified. This neither delays nor prejudices your case.
Not the ones that matter here. A British national is no longer an EU citizen for certain instruments, and surrender between Spain and the United Kingdom now runs through the arrangements agreed after withdrawal rather than the European Arrest Warrant; see European Arrest Warrant and surrender defence. Your rights under Article 520, to an interpreter, to a lawyer and to consular assistance are unchanged.
If you or someone you know has been arrested in Benidorm, or summoned to court here, the useful conversation happens before a statement is given. We attend police stations and courts in the Benidorm judicial district from our office in Alicante, at Playa de San Juan, and act throughout the province and from Madrid. We will tell you honestly what the file looks like and what the realistic outcomes are.
Société de Conseil Juridique et Expert es un despacho de abogados con sedes en Madrid, Alicante, Londres y París, especializado en defensa y acusación penal, delitos económicos y corporativos y derecho tecnológico. Trabajamos con orientación estratégica en procedimientos penales complejos, propiedad intelectual y análisis forense avanzado, y prestamos consultoría jurídica, compliance y escudos de protección a particulares y empresas. Atendemos desde Alicante y Madrid, con consulta online en toda España y asistencia al detenido 24 horas. Resuelva sus dudas en las preguntas frecuentes o solicite una primera consulta.
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