Posted: Friday, 15 January 2016
Despite the fact drivers under 70 in the UK must renew their photocard licence every 10 years, the DVLA will remind you before your current licence expires just in case you are a bit forgetful.
You don't need to worry about the renewal process either, as it is relatively straightforward to complete online. There is a handy list of things you will need on the government's website and your new licence should arrive within a week of applying too.
Therefore, there really are no excuses for not renewing your license when the time rolls around. This is especially true when you consider the fact that failing to do so could result in a £1,000 fine, rather than the £14 it costs to renew via debit or credit card.
One of the reasons why you need to renew your licence every 10 years is because appearances can change over such a long period of time. The police and other enforcement agencies need to have the best possible photograph in order to correctly identify whether a driving license is being used fraudulently.
The latest driving licence photocards contain various security features, such as a holograph, raised surface pattern, and an Optical Variable Ink (OVI), to ensure deceit and deception are not possible. In the past, imposters could potentially present the police or employers with the paper counterpart of their licence, which did not contain a photo or many security measures. However, this document is no longer valid or issued by the DVLA as of June 2015.
When renewing your licence, the DVLA asks for a photo that is a recent and true likeness. This also prevents driving licence impersonation, which stops disqualified and potentially dangerous drivers from taking to the road.
This is an ever-present concern for fleet operators and managers that must ensure the drivers they employ possess a genuine and valid licence. Here at Fleet Licence Check, we are able to provide companies with an electronic driving licence testing and validation facility using DVLA sourced data.
However, this information must be kept up-to-date and correct for businesses to avoid the risks of licence checking non-compliance. To help out, the DVLA introduced the possibility of a £1,000 fine to anyone who doesn't renew his or her driving licence with an accurate photograph.