I was convicted by Cardiff Magistrates Court for an offence of drink driving offence and received a three year disqualification from driving. I have recently applied to have my licence returned to me but have been informed that the DVLA will want to make further investigations before re-issuing my driving licence. What exactly does this mean?
Where a person has been convicted of a drink or drug driving offence, particularly where there have been similar convictions in the past, the DVLA will require a medical examination and an assessment of whether your licence should be re-issued where you are classed as a ‘High Risk Offender’. The definition includes drivers who have more than one conviction for drink driving on their record, drivers who provided a high reading at the time of the original drink driving offence or any driver who is or was alcohol dependent. The investigation can include various medical tests to ensure that you no longer pose a risk of drinking and driving and are not alcohol dependent
Moreover the DVLA can request information from your doctor to confirm whether there are any underlying medical issues which suggest that you should not have a driving licence. You should cooperate with any such request and you are likely to have to pay for the medical assessment. Anything less than full co-operation with the DVLA and the medics is likely to result in your application for the return of your driving licence being refused.
If your application for the driving licence is refused, you can appeal the refusal to the magistrates’ court who will consider your case based upon all the facts. This application would be made to the Cardiff Magistrates Court being the Court that convicted and sentenced you.
To present the best possible application, a note from your GP confirming that you are fit to hold a licence and drive would assist. In fact any medical information could be crucial in the case where the DVLA object to the return of your driving licence. In some cases, this could involve instructing an expert to confirm that you are not alcohol dependent.