Martin Lewis issues urgent warning to motorists to check their driving licence and avoid a hefty £1,000 fine
- The money saving expert, 52, issues the warning on his website
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Martin Lewis has issued an urgent warning to motorists to check their driving licence, alerting them to a potential £1,000 fine.
The money saving expert, 52, has warned drivers across the UK that they could be in for an unpleasant shock if they are discovered driving with an out-of-date licence.
According to data from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), 2.3 million people across the UK will see their licences expire this year - though many might not realise.
Writing on the Money Saving Expert website, advisors warned that the repercussions for being caught without a valid licence could be as expensive as they are inconvenient.
Those caught driving without an in-date licence could even face fines of £1,000.
Martin, who hails from Manchester, urged all licence holders to do one simple thing to avoid having the shell out - check the expiry date.
As of 1998, photocard licences have been in place across the UK. Paper driving licences issued before 31 March 2000 are still valid.
But cards given to drivers are only valid for ten years at a time and must be renewed after this period.
Martin Lewis (pictured) has issued an urgent warning to drivers licence holders, alerting them to a potential £1,000 fine
The date is given on the front of the plastic card and can be found under section 4B.
If drivers are due an update, they can easily do so by going onto the DVLA website and ordering a new version.
Renewing a driving licence costs either £14 online or £17 via post and will require an updated passport or alternative form of legal identification.
For those applying by post, forms known as D1 papers are available from most UK post offices or can be obtained from the DVLA website.
Drivers can also get their licence updated at the post office, though this requires an additional charge of £4.50 to take a photo on top of the initial £17 fee.
Those over 70 will need to renew their licence every three years instead of every 10 - though this can be done for free.
The same also applies to people who have a short-term medical licence.
Writing on the Money Saving Expert website, advisors said people can still drive if their licence is out of date, so long as they are in the process of getting it renewed.
According to data from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, DVLA , a massive 2.3 million people across the UK are due to see their licences expire this year - though many might not realise (stock image)
'The DVLA says if your licence expires while it is processing your renewal application, you should be able to continue driving as long as you meet certain conditions,' it states.
These include ‘only driving vehicles you were entitled to drive on your previous licence, not being told by a doctor or optician that you shouldn’t drive, and you aren’t disqualified from driving.’
If someone has applied for a medical licence, they must ensure they are fulfilling all the criteria to qualify.
'If you’re waiting for a medical driving licence – in other words, you have declared a medical condition to the DVLA – you must make sure you meet the medical standards for fitness to drive before doing so,' they explained.
As well as making sure to check the expiry date, Martin alerted drivers to the address section of their licence, urging them to ensure it's correct to avoid getting a fine.
This process is simple and only requires people to go on the DVLA website where they can receive an updated licence for free.
Martin pointed licence holders in the direction of the expiry date to check whether theirs ends this year
It's good news for regular movers as the number of times a licence holder can change their address is unlimited.
To change the address of a driving licence is also free.
Finally, people will need to ensure their first and surname is correct, along with their correct gender.
Again, this can easily be rectified by ordering a D1 application for for a driving licence via the Gov.uk website and making the necessary changes.
This will then need to be posted to the DVLA alongside the appropriate documents. Fortunately, there is no cap on the number of times this can be done.
- A previous version of this article reported that all paper licences are no longer valid. We have since amended the report to clarify that paper driving licences issued before 31st March, 2000 are still valid, until the holder is 70 years old.
