How to check your driving licence online

https://www.confused.com/car-insurance/guides/how-to-check-your-driving-licence?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter&utm_source=brandawareness&utm_term=20211003&utm_content=september_2021_newsletter_bulletin_customers

Must be a slow news day if they're reporting this tosh. Next it'll be "Drivers MUST check this every year or risk having their car SIEZED". Then the article simply says you need to tax, insure and MOT your car every year...

Seven years ago, with the big seven-oh approaching, I went to the local post office to have my pic taken and to apply for a new licence  The counter-lady sent it all off (or was meant to). I was preoccupied with a couple of potentially serious health issues (happily now more or less resolved) and thought nothing more of it; then the following year I submitted my licence as ID to a bank clerk - who pointed out that it was out-of-date.

Panic. I rang the DVLA who said not to worry, download form so-and-so and send it to us by Special Delivery and you can carry on driving.

Curiously the Agency had my latest pic but somewhere along the line my application had not been processed.

Had I left it a few more months I would have had to retake my test - and of course I could have got into trouble for driving without a licence.

I only have a paper licence. I last moved house 25 years ago. People keep telling me it’s not valid and I should have a photo card licence. It’s says on it that it’s valid until 2032. As far as I know it’s still ok as long as I don’t need to make any changes

10 hours ago, isetta said:

it’s valid until 2032

and so it is. You keep the paper license as long you can. If DVLA want you to have a plastic card let them provide free.

2 hours ago, unofix said:

 You keep the paper license as long you can. If DVLA want you to have a plastic card let them provide free.

Looks like they might be getting rid of the plastic ones as well 🙄

 

https://www.mirror.co.uk/money/end-plastic-driving-licences-dvla-25006467

Well if that works as well as the NHS app we will all have a licence to fly Concorde by Christmas 🤣

So since we are not having a national identity card, and not everyone has a passport (or carries it with them) what will people use when asked for ID at the supermarket checkout ?

18 minutes ago, unofix said:

Well if that works as well as the NHS app we will all have a licence to fly Concorde by Christmas 🤣

So since we are not having a national identity card, and not everyone has a passport (or carries it with them) what will people use when asked for ID at the supermarket checkout ?

Doesn't everyone carry their phone with them?  Or at least everyone young enough to be ID'd at the supermarket!

 

53 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Doesn't everyone carry their phone with them?  Or at least everyone young enough to be ID'd at the supermarket!

 

No. I use my bus pass in the supermarket as otherwise I have difficulty proving I'm old enough to buy alcohol!😀

1 hour ago, TomsFocus said:

Doesn't everyone carry their phone with them?  Or at least everyone young enough to be ID'd at the supermarket!

 

No. Not all the time. 

Well assuming that everyone who needed to be ID (and my 26 year old daughter was yesterday in Sainsbury's  buying a small pair of scissors) was carrying a mobile with them, then we have to hope they can get a signal and that the DVLA site isn't too busy, and everyone is happy to wait in the queue while the system confirms ID.  !!

It's a fair point but plenty of people already use apps for loyalty cards and pay for stuff with apple pay etc.  That's the way things are going in the digital age.

Major supermarkets generally have WiFi.

If I'm going to buy age-restricted products, I make sure I'm wearing tweed and have a pipe. Works so far.

On 11/14/2021 at 2:49 PM, Eric Bloodaxe said:

No. I use my bus pass in the supermarket as otherwise I have difficulty proving I'm old enough to buy alcohol!😀

I didn't realise you were that old to own one, Rodger. 😛 Anyway, I can remember my Dad being asked for ID when buying drinks in a pub, yep, he showed his Bus pass too. I'm not sure if it was asked as a joke.

Is it an offence to not to show your licence when stopped by police? I'm sure it is one to use a mobile phone in your car! So you could be fined for showing or not showing your licence to an officer.

2 hours ago, Jim H said:

Is it an offence to not to show your licence when stopped by police?

If you don't have your Driving Licence and other documents with you when you are stopped by the police it is not an offence, they give you a form and you need to show them to any police station within a certain number of days.

I have had to do this several times in my youth, probably because I used to have very old cars and there was no electronic check for the MOT and Insurance then.