Being treated as if I have a drink drive conviction

Convicted Driver Insurance

EcclesCake

New Member
Ill try to keep this as short as possible.

I have bipolar and went off the rails about 4 years ago, had an incident in a car (that did not involve alcohol or the police) and my psychiatrist decided it was probably best if I did not drive. I surrendered my license.

Fast forward about two years and I was deemed fit enough to drive again by the doctors so I re-applied, my gp and psychiatrist were sent forms and then I got a letter back saying I had been refused a license due to persistent alcohol misuse and to reapply after 6 months and when blood levels had returned to normal. My GP sent another letter and they reopened the case due to new information, then a couple of months later asked me to go for a medical / blood test and about a week after that I was issued with a license. I was not drinking at all at the time.

Roll on 9 months and I get a renewal pack through, I sent it off straight away and they wrote back to say they were writing to my GP and Consultant again. Just before my 1 year license expired I got a letter to say my license had been revoked again due to a history of persistent alcohol misuse. To cut a long story short, a student psychiatrist I had seen in Feb asked me to go through everything in my history again and I told here that as the time I was drinking half a bottle of wine a day. She then went off sick and her report was only typed up in April where she said I had a harmful use of alcohol. My new GP (I moved) then got the form through from the DVLA, saw the report and copied the diagnosis over to that form and the DVLA then took appropriate action.

Anyway, I have not drunk a drop since Feb, I have spoken to the GP who has written to the DVLA to correct his error and they sent new forms out to my GP and my new Psychiatrist (they changed every 6 months due to a cycle). The DVLA are now considering matters, I keep calling them and it has now been passed to a manager.

In the meantime it has been months since I had a license. I still dont think half a bottle a day was that bad, I have never drunk and then driven, I have never been in trouble with the police and I have never been to court and yet sometimes I think if I had it would be an easier more clear cut path to get my license back. I really hope I do not have this every year.

Do I have any rights at all or are DVLA god?
 
If the DVLA revoke your licence on the basis of persistent alcohol misuse then it is usually revoked for a period of 6 months. Upon reapplication you must show a minimum of 6 months of controlled drinking or abstinence, and normalisation of blood parameters. If you have demonstrated that to the DVLA and they are still refusing to reinstate your licence then you have the option to appeal the decision to the magistrates' court. You have a deadline of 6 months after the decision to revoke or decision to refuse your licence to make any appeal to the magistrates' court. This can be a complicated matter and I would advise you speak with a specialist solicitor to discuss your options before proceeding. You can contact a solicitor to discuss further on 03332009863.
 
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