Changes To The Paper Part Of Your Driving Licence On 8th June 2015

There will be no paper part of your driving licence issued from the DVLA. This decision has been made as a result of the government’s Red Tape Challenge consultation and it also works in conjunction with the plan of the DVLA to simplify their services.

If You Have A Paper Counterpart To Your Photocard Licence

After Monday 8th June 2015, this part of your driving licence will have no legal status. It is recommended that you destroy your paper counterpart after this date, but you will need to make sure you still have your current photocard licence.

If You Have A Paper Driving Licence

Paper driving licences were issued before 1998, when the photocard was introduced. These types of licences will remain valid so please do not destroy them.

If you find that you need to update your name, address or renew your driving licence, you will then be issued with just a photocard, there will be no paper counterpart.

If You Have Penalty Points (Endorsements)

As of Monday 8th June 2015, penalty points will only be recorded electronically, meaning they won’t be printed or written on your photocard or paper driving licence.

If you commit an offence after this date, you will still need to pay any fines you incur and submit your licence to the court, but the manner in which the court deals with the paperwork relating to it will alter. For photo card licences, the court will keep hold of the paper counterpart and only return the photocard to you. For paper licences, the court will return it to you, but they won’t have written or printed any details of the offence on it.

This means that following the 8th June 2015, neither your photocard driving licence or your paper driving licence will be able to provide details of any driving endorsements you have received. This information will be held on the DVLA drivers records, which you can check online, over the phone or by contacting them by post.

If You Want To Check The Details Of Your Driving Licence

If you would like to look at the details on your driving licence, you can use the DVLA’s online driving licence service. This will show you information such as what vehicles you are legally licensed to drive and information relating to any penalty points you may have.

If You Need To Give Your Employer Or A Hire Company Confirmation Of Your Driving Record

I you are hiring a vehicle after the 8th June 2015 or you make your living by driving and need to give evidence of your driving records for example, any penalty points or entitlements you have), you will need to use the free online DVLA facility known as the Share Driving Licence service.

At the moment, this service is under development, but it will be completely available before the counterpart is abolished. You can use the service if you are a holder of a photocard or a paper driving licence and it will allow you to download a summary of your licence record to be either printed or shared.

Alternatively, if you would prefer, you can contact the DVLA by phone and give permission for your record to be checked verbally by a person or organisation you nominate.

Hiring A Vehicle

If you have plans to hire a vehicle after 8th June 2015, you may want to ring and check with the company to see what they will need to see when you arrive.

Should they request evidence of the vehicles you are licensed to drive or confirmation of any penalty points on your licence, you can request a unique code from gov.uk. This code will let you download a summery of your driving record or let you share your driving licence details. The code will expire after 72 hours and will give the hire companies enough time yo make any checks they deem necessary. You may also call for a code if you would prefer. This works for both photocard and paper driving licences.

Bear in mind that not all hire companies will ask for this sort of information and it is recommended that you speak to the company to find out if it will be needed or not.

Organisations & Businesses That Check The Counterpart

If you are a business, company or organisation that relies on the counterpart to check the riving record of your customers or employees, you will need to start using the Share Driving Licence service, available for free online.

This new service is offered alongside existing services, but it is designed for those who have a need for real-time access to the relevant information and may not be able to call the DVLA.

The driving licence information will only be available via this service with the consent of the holder of the licence.