Licence out of date up to £1000 fine

[cullpacket]

Thousands of motorists are at risk of being fined up to £1000 because they are unwittingly driving without a valid licence.

They risk prosecution after failing to spot the extremely small print on their photo card licence which says it automatically expires after 10 years and has to be renewed - even though drivers are licensed to drive until the age of 70.

The fiasco has come to light a decade after the first batch of photo licences was issued in July 1998, just as the they start to expire.

Motoring organisations blamed the Government for the fiasco and said 'most' drivers believed their licences were for life.

A mock-up driving licence from 1998 when the photo cards were launched shows the imminent expiry date as item '4b'

To rub salt into wounds, drivers will have to a pay £17.50 to renew their card - a charge which critics have condemned as a 'stealth tax' and which will earn the Treasury an estimated £437million over 25 years.

Official DVLA figures reveal that while 16,136 expired this summ er, so far only 11,566 drivers have renewed, leaving 4,570 outstanding.

With another 300,000 photo card licences due to expire over the coming year, experts fear the number of invalid licences will soar, putting thousands more drivers in breach of the law and at risk of a fine.

[Angela]

I didn't know that, cullpacket, but now that I've taken a look, I can see it's quite clear on the front of the photocard.

On the front of mine:

4a 11-03-04 4b 04-12-10

On the back:

4a Licence valid from
4b Licence valid to

Mine's still valid fortunately -phew! - but many thanks for bringing it to my attention.:) Not sure why mine expires after less than 7 years - it's not that I'll be 70.... :confused Possibly it's because I amended my details when I moved house in 2004 and the original photocard was from 2000.

I really should have noticed it tho' -these dates must be there for a reason and the print is actually no smaller than for any of the other details, such as my name. But somehow these things can be easily missed!:eek:

[AfternoonDelight]

I have moved house several times and got married since I got my card licence...oops! I just never seem to get round to doing these sorts of things...my passport is the same! :confused

[riggerboy]

i dont have 1 of those photos ones yet, are you supposed to change them or what ????

[AfternoonDelight]

I think you are supposed to have one... not entirely sure though....

[Bad Manners]

When you change address you must inform DVLA of your new address it is a mandatory requirement. for those who have the correct details the DVLA do send you a letter outlining the fact that you will have to have an updated licence with a uptodate photo. So those people who have provided DVAl with their correct details will get notification prior to your current licence running out. As for the £17. I disagree with it but it's just another tax we have to pay the main reason for the update is the photo as most peoples apperance does change with age very few look the same as they did 10 years ago.

[bekisman]

It's here to apply on line (I think I'll hang onto my paper one for the meantime)..

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/Motoringtransactions/BeforeyouapplyC/DG_066954

[Anji]

i dont have 1 of those photos ones yet, are you supposed to change them or what ????

You don't have to get a new photo licence if your details remain the same. If you want to inform them of a change of address, you'll have to apply for the new one.

[Kevin Milkins]

I have moved house several times and got married since I got my card licence...oops! I just never seem to get round to doing these sorts of things...my passport is the same! :confused

Not sure if you are talking about out of date or change of address, AfternoonDelight, but passports don't have your address on them.

[JAWS]

I think you have to notify the passport people if you change your name on getting married. You can soon check what is required at any main post office because they generally have booklets there with all the requirements.
New passports now are truly frightening.

With the photo licences for driving, they automatically expire after ten years, presumably, as with passports, so the photo is up to date.
It is one of those things which has slipped by generally unnoticed (I presume the information is hidden in the small print which requires the use of a magnifying glass to be found).
It only seems to have come to light recently because of people being prosecuted for no knowing and the media have become aware as a result.

[the_big_mac]

Im due for renewal, and even though I dont live at the address the license is registered too, the renewal was sent to my current address, where my car is registered to.

Also, there is no fee to renew.

Have you been reading the Daily Mail my freind?

[2little2late]

So glad you told us that. Mine expires 17th July. Maybe it would be a good idea if this thread was a sticky so it doesn't drop down the list. Do the DVLA send a reminder to renew our licence as they do with road tax? I'll bet they don't just so they canget extra money from us.

[JAWS]

Im due for renewal, and even though I dont live at the address the license is registered too, the renewal was sent to my current address, where my car is registered to.
Now that is very interesting and well worth being aware of. "We know who you are and we know where to find you", just as they keep telling us.

[MadPict]

Slightly off topic but a couple of months ago the OH's car road tax was comingup for renewal and there was no sign of a reminder notice.

I went on line and managed to renew it straight away. Yesterday a friend mentioned their VEL was due for renewal but they hadn't got the usual reminder. Turns out they renewed last year online (which I believe we did the previous year).

So, if you have renewed previously online it looks like DVLA will no longer send you paper reminders. May be worth remembering if you tend to forget when your VEL renewal is due...

[AfternoonDelight]

Not sure if you are talking about out of date or change of address, AfternoonDelight, but passports don't have your address on them.

No - just the married thing, Kevin... I need to remember and book my holidays in my maiden name!! :cool:

[veekay]

WORTH CHECKING YOUR LICENSE ASAP!
Unwitting motorists face £1,000 fines as thousands of photocard driving licences expire
Thousands of motorists are at risk of being fined up to £1,000 because they are unwittingly driving without a valid licence.
They risk prosecution after failing to spot the extremely small print on their photocard licence which says it automatically expires after 10 years and has to be renewed - even though drivers are licensed to drive until the age of 70.
The fiasco has come to light a decade after the first batch of photo licences was issued in July 1998, just as the they start to expire.
Motoring organisations blamed the Government for the fiasco and said 'most' drivers believed their licences were for life.

They said officials had failed to publicise sufficiently the fact that new-style licences - unlike the old paper ones - expire after a set period and have to be renewed.
To rub salt into wounds, drivers will have to a pay £17.50 to renew their card - a charge which critics have condemned as a 'stealth tax' and which will earn the Treasury an estimated £437million over 25 years.
Official DVLA figures reveal that while 16,136 expired this summer, so far only 11,566 drivers have renewed, leaving 4,570 outstanding.
With another 300,000 photocard licences due to expire over the coming year, experts fear the number of invalid licences will soar, putting thousands more drivers in breach of the law and at risk of a fine.
At the heart of the confusion is the small print on the tiny credit-card-size photo licence, which is used in conjunction with the paper version.
Just below the driver name on the front of the photocard licence is a series of dates and details - each one numbered.
Number 4b features a date in tiny writing, but no explicit explanation as to what it means.
The date's significance is only explained if the driver turns over the card and reads the key on the back which states that '4b' means 'licence valid to'.
Even more confusingly, an adjacent table on the rear of the card sets out how long the driver is registered to hold a licence - that is until his or her 70th birthday.
A total of 25million new-style licences have been issued but - motoring experts say - drivers were never sufficiently warned they would expire after 10 years.
Motorists who fail to renew their licences in time are allowed to continue driving. But the DVLA says they could be charged with 'failing to surrender their licence', an offence carrying a £1,000 fine.
AA president, Edmund King said: 'It is not generally known that photocard licences expire: there appears to be a lack of information that people will have to renew these licences.
'People think they have already paid them for once over and that is it.
'It will come as a surprise to motorists and a shock that they have to pay an extra £17.50.'
The AA called on the Government to use the annual £450million from traffic enforcement fines to offset the renewal charge.
Before photocard licences were introduced, old-style paper licences were valid until the age of 70.

[Tom Cornwall]

[/FONT][/SIZE][/FONT]At the heart of the confusion is the small print on the tiny credit-card-size photo licence, which is used in conjunction with the paper version.[FONT=Tahoma][SIZE=2][FONT=Tahoma]


surely if it's used in CONJUNCTION with the paper one, there's no prob...if you've still got your paper one then surely you're still a driving licence holder...or am I being thick (as normal)

[hammers]

DVLA send out a reminder 2 months before your photo licence expires.

[stiggy]

Tom you're not thick but what they mean by in conjunction with the paper one is the A4 sheet of paper that the photo ID part was attached to when you got it. This in itself is not a licence, alot of places require you to show both parts.

[docker]

Im due for renewal, and even though I dont live at the address the license is registered too, the renewal was sent to my current address, where my car is registered to.

Also, there is no fee to renew.

Have you been reading the Daily Mail my freind?

Yes there is. I've just renewed my one and had to supply an up-to-date photo and a cheque or postal order for 17.50.

[cullbucket]

I still have the old pink one that I have had for 20 years since I was 17 (no photo) it still has my parents address on it and is valid until my 70th birthday. Is it still legal to drive using this license or are photo ones now mandatory? It is still useful for using to hire cars etc. overseas. (I don't live in the UK any more).