If you’ve applied for your driving licence and it still hasn’t turned up, you’re not alone. New figures have revealed that drivers are facing a 10-week wait if they’ve applied for a new driving permit.
The driving licence backlog is so bad that MPs are demanding action by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). We look at what’s causing the problem and what you can do about it.
The driving licence is an unsung part of many of our lives but it’s going to change soon. The government has revealed it wants all driving licences to be digital from 2024. It is developing a smartphone app that everyone will have their driving licence on.
To celebrate the impending demise of the driving licence, take our cunning quiz to see how much you know about it.
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Drivers who need to renew their driving licence, tax their car or even book driving tests might be paying way more than they have to because they’re using unofficial websites.
The government is warning drivers that these websites can charge many times the official cost. Even so, the companies running them are doing nothing wrong.
Where do you keep your driving licence and is it safe? These are questions every driver should be asking after it was revealed that nearly one million licences were lost or stolen last year.
As if the hassle of applying and paying for a replacement licence wasn’t aggravation enough, security experts warn that lost or stolen licences can’t be cancelled. The result is crooks can continue to use another person’s driving licence as identification.
Victims of identify fraud can find that bank accounts have been opened in their name. Hire cars might have been stolen using their credentials. And new-car finance contracts could be applied for using stolen ID. To help drivers safeguard their licence and identity, here is the advice from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).
When did you last look at your driving licence? And if you have looked at it recently, did you know that you have to update it every 10 years or risk a hefty fine?
You won’t be alone if you haven’t. According to a new survey, 4 per cent of the UK’s 37.5 million driving licence holders have the wrong address on their licences. That means there are 1.5m drivers whose licences have incorrect information on them. Another 2.2m driving licences have expired completely. If the Driver Vehicle Licencing Agency (DVLA) could track them all down – unlikely as it doesn’t have a valid address for nearly half of them – and impose the maximum fine, the government would be £3.7bn better off.
The number of drivers banned from the road for dangerous driving rocketed last year. Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) figures show that 5179 drivers lost their licence for driving dangerously in 2016. The figure was up by nearly a third (29 per cent) compared with the year before.
The stats show that young adults between the ages of 26 and 35 are the most likely to be disqualified. The Highway Code states: “In the case of serious offences, such as dangerous driving and drink-driving, the court must order disqualification.” The ban is for 12 months. Drivers can also be slapped with an endorsement on their licence of between three and 11 points. But how long will those points stay there after their ban is over? Here’s all you need to know.