• Home Page
• Motoring News
• Police & Motorists
• Road Traffic Act
• Driving & Drugs
• Motoring Solicitors
• Driver Licensing
  • Medical Rules
  • Foreign Licence
  • New/Update Licence
  • Learning to Drive/Ride
  • Practical Tests
  • Motorcycles/Mopeds
  • Caravans/Trailers
  • Driver Obligations
  • Photocard Licence
  • Taxing Vehicles
  • Theory Test
  • New Drivers
• Owning a Vehicle
• Parking
  • Parking Regulations
  • Parking Enforcement
• Speeding
• Insurance
• Readers Comments
• Safe Roads
• Highway Code
• Parliament
• Traffic Information
• Road Signs
• Do It Online
• A - Z Index

Police Powers Police Powers Tinted Windows Roads Policing Strategy Endorsements No Insurance? - Think again!! National Speed Awareness Course What's a fixed penalty notice (FPN)? Police & Highways Endorsements And Disqualifications  Whether you are caught speeding, drink driving dangerous driving or any one of the plethera of offences that a motorist can commit the punishment can cost you a lot. There's the fine, and the points which means Insurance premiums will rise costing you more money. Disqualification can mean that you have great difficulties in re-insuring your vehicle and if you do the premiums will reflect this. If you are convicted of a motoring offence, the court can endorse your licence with penalty points or order a period of disqualification. A person whose penalty points reach 12 or more in a period of 3 years is liable to be disqualified Endorsement Guide Removing Expired Endorsements How to get your licence back after being disqualified How a disqualification period may be reduced Short period disqualifications The Road Traffic (New Drivers) Act 1995 Endorsement Offence Codes Mutual Recognition of Driving Disqualifications with other countries

1. Endorsement Guide

Disqualifications, convictions and acceptance of fixed penalties payments in respect of driving offences are notified to DVLA by the courts. The details are entered on to the driver's record and the licence. In addition to paying a fine/fixed penalty the drivers licence will be endorsed with a penalty ranging from 3-11 points or a period of disqualification will be imposed, depending on the seriousness of the offence. Any driver who incurs 12 or more penalty points within a 3-year period is liable to be disqualified under the "totting -up" system. Information on a driver's entitlement and endorsements are sent to courts and police on request.

Endorsements must remain on a licence for 11 years from date of conviction if the offence is :

• drinking/drugs and driving (shown on the licence as DR10, DR20, DR30 and DR80).

• causing death by careless driving whilst under the influence of drink/drugs (shown on the licence as CD40,CD50 and CD60).

• causing death by careless driving, then failing to provide a specimen for analysis (shown on the licence as CD70).

or 4 years from date of conviction if the offence is as listed below :

• reckless/dangerous driving (shown on the licence as DD40,DD60 and DD80), 

• offences resulting in disqualification.

• disqualified from holding a full licence until a driving test has been passed.

or 4 years from the date of offence in all other cases.

2. Removing Expired Endorsements

Paper Licence Holders

If you wish to have expired endorsements removed from your driving licence you must complete driving licence application form D1 (previously D750) and enclose your current driving licence together with the appropriate fee.  You must also enclose original documentation confirming your identity (click here for a full list of acceptable identity documents) and a passport sized photograph taken against a plain light background (for photograph criteria click here).  Send your completed application and fee to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1AB or you may be able to use the Post Office® Checking Service.

Photocard Licence Holders

If you wish to have expired endorsements removed from your driving licence you must complete driving licence application form D1 (previously D750) and enclose both your photocard licence and paper counterpart together with the appropriate fee.  Send your completed application and fee to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1AB. 

Note: Photocard Holders - If your name has changed since your photocard licence was issued you must complete driving licence application form D1 (previously D750) and enclose both your photocard and paper counterpart together with the appropriate fee.   You must also enclose original documentation confirming your new name.  There is no requirement to supply a new photograph.

3. How to get your licence back after being disqualified

You must apply for a new licence, even if your old licence has not run out.

Paper Licence Holders

You will automatically be sent application forms D27 and D750, 56 days before the period of disqualification ends. You must complete both forms and enclose the appropriate fee. You must also enclose original documentation confirming your identity (for a list of acceptable identity documents click here ) and a passport sized colour photograph taken against a plain light background (for photograph criteria click here). Send your completed application and fee to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1AB or you may be able to use the Post Office® Checking Service.

Photocard Licence Holders 

You will automatically be sent application form D27, 56 days before the period of disqualification ends. You must complete the D27 form and enclose the appropriate fee. Send your completed application and fee to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1AB.

Note: If your name has changed since your last licence was issued you must complete application form D27 and photocard application form D750 and enclose the appropriate fee. You must also enclose original documentation confirming your new name. There is no requirement to supply a new photograph.

If for any reason you do not receive a D27 form, you may apply using a D1 (previously D750) application form in its place.

We will make medical enquiries if you have :-

a) been disqualified for driving, or being in charge of a vehicle, when the level of alcohol in the body equalled or exceeded :-

i.) 87.5 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath, or

ii.) 200 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of blood, or

iii) 267.5 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of urine.

b) two disqualifications within the space of 10 years for drinking and driving, or being in charge of a vehicle whilst unfit through drink.

c) one disqualification for refusing/failing to supply a specimen for analysis.

If you are not sure when your disqualification ends, contact the court which disqualified you.

4. How a disqualification period may be reduced

The law permits those who have been disqualified for more than two years to apply to the convicting court for a reduction in the period of disqualification in the following circumstances:

• After serving 2 years of the disqualification period if you were disqualified for more than 2 but less than 4 years
• After half the period of disqualification has been served if you were disqualified for less than 10 years but not less than 4 years
• After serving 5 years of the disqualification period if you were disqualified for 10 years or more.

If the court agrees to reduce the period of disqualification, an application must be made to DVLA for the early restoration of your driving licence. Please note that although courts may approve a reduction in the period of disqualification, this does not affect the period (4 or 11 years depending on the offence) for which the endorsement must legally remain on the driving licence.

5. Short Period Disqualifications (SPD)

If you were disqualified for less than 56 days, the court will stamp your licence and give it back to you. The stamp will tell you how long you are disqualified for. You do not need to renew your licence when the short period disqualification ends. Your licence becomes valid again the day after the expiry of the disqualification.

6. The Road Traffic ( New Drivers) Act 1995

This Act will affect you if you passed your first GB driving test after 1 June 1997 when it came into force. If the number of valid penalty points shown on your driving licence total 6 or more during the two year probationary period immediately following your first driving test, your full driving licence will be revoked by DVLA until such time as you pass a further driving test.

Such drivers should apply for a provisional driving licence if they wish to continue driving and are subject to "learner" conditions until they pass both theory and practical parts of the driving test.

Valid penalty points incurred prior to passing the first test are taken into account if the driver commits a penalty point offence during the probationary period. Points incurred after the probationary period has expired will also count if the offence was committed during the probationary period.

Full entitlement to all categories of vehicle previously held will only be reinstated upon passing a test in any one of the driver's previously held entitlements. A successful test for entitlement to a category of vehicle not previously held will result in a full licence for that category only.

There is no right of appeal against revocation under the provisions of the Act. A driver may only appeal against the conviction, which led to the revocation.

How to Apply for Your Licence After Revocation Under the New Drivers Act

To apply for a provisional driving licence you should complete a D1 form. Your application should be sent to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1AB together with relevant original identity documents, a photograph as prescribed in the D1 form and the appropriate fee.

Full entitlement to all categories of vehicle held previously will be reinstated upon passing a test in any one of your original entitlements.

Adding A Test Pass

Once you have passed your driving test (theory and practical) you should exchange your test pass certificate for a new licence as soon as possible. If you do not claim your test pass within 2 years of the date of your test, the entitlement conveyed by the test pass will be lost and you will have to pass a further driving test (theory and practical) for that category of vehicle if you wish to have it included on your driving licence.

If you hold a photocard licence you must complete the declaration on the reverse of your test pass certificate and send it together with your photocard licence, paper counterpart and the appropriate fee to DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1BJ.

If you hold a paper licence you must also enclose a completed D1 form and the appropriate identity documents.

Drivers who exchange their foreign licence for a GB licence

Drivers who have exchanged a licence from another country for a GB licence and acquire 6 or more valid penalty points are subject to the New Drivers Act, if during the previous 2 years they passed their first driving test in the Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Gibraltar or another EEA state.

A revoked driver may reclaim his previous entitlement by passing an appropriate test in the Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Gibraltar or another EEA state.
No other test passes are acceptable including those from 'designated' countries.

7. Endorsement Offence Codes

The following is a guide to the number of penalty points a court may impose, it does not reflect the fact that some offences may incur a disqualification. These codes are recorded from information supplied by the courts - any queries about them should be addressed to the courts which imposed them.

    
Aiding, Abetting, Counselling or Procuring

Offences as coded, but with the end 0 changed to 2

   
Causing or permitting

Offences as coded, but with the end 0 changed to 4

Inciting

Offences as coded, but with the end 0 changed to 6

Period of time

Periods of time are signified as follows: D=Days, M=Months, Y=Years

Endorsements remain on a counterpart licence for:

•     11 years from date of conviction for offences relating to drink/drugs and driving, causing death by careless driving whilst under the influence of drink/drugs and causing death by careless driving then failing to provide a specimen for analysis

•     4 years from date of conviction for reckless/dangerous driving and offences resulting in disqualification

•     4 years from the date of offence in all other cases 

8. Mutual Recognition of Driving Disqualifications with other countries

Northern Ireland

Since 11 October 2004 there has been mutual recognition between GB & NI of driving disqualifications. This allows:

Reciprocal provisions came into force in Northern Ireland at the same time as those made in Great Britain.

Isle of Man

Since 23 May 2005 mutual recognition of driving disqualifications between Great Britain and Northern Ireland was extended to include the Isle of Man.

This means that drivers who are disqualified from holding a driving licence in GB/NI on or after 23 May 2005 will also be disqualified from driving, holding or obtaining a driving licence in the Isle of Man. Similarly, if a court in the Isle of Man disqualifies a driver from driving they will also be disqualified from driving in GB/NI until the disqualification has ended.

Mutual recognition between GB/NI and IoM will only be in relation to driving disqualifications. The New Drivers Act and fixed penalties will not be included.

Information courtesy of Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency Swansea SA6 7JL