CDT Test

Convicted Driver Insurance

FriendlyAdvice

New Member
Hi People,
I hope that I am posting in the correct page.
I want to share my experience with the CDT test process.
I was convicted of drink driving in 2016 and received a 22 month ban (blew 85) caught driving at night without lights. no accident or injures to anyone.
I did a course to knock 4 months off my ban.
I drank heavy every day then and feel very lucky that no one got hurt.
When I took my first CDT test I did not drink for 7 weeks and received a one year licence. No word of why just given a years licence.

I just had my second test a couple of weeks ago and I don't drink nearly as much, 4 beers on a weekend sometimes none. I have new friends that don't drink much and this time around I had not drunk for 4 weeks before the test, however before that I was at a party and drunk low alcohol beer and a couple of shots ( I added this up honestly as 7.1 units and said that at the medical)

I did receive my CDT results this time and it was 0.5% and was given a 5 year licence with a friendly warning to keep it that way.

My point is my friends if you are honest and serious about getting your licence back stop drinking and you all be fine.

I didn't take any special/magic vitamins or herbal teas. I just stopped drinking.

I write this to give hope and peace of mind to those of you that are worried about your test results.
 
Hi why were you HRO statud
Blowing 85 is not HRO status , so no requirement for CDT unless you had previous convictions or maybe you were missuse or dependent status more info is more helpful
 
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Hi why were you HRO statud
Blowing 85 is not HRO status , so no requirement for CDT unless you had previous convictions or maybe you were missuse or dependent status more info is more helpful
Hi I wasn't told that I was HRO status. Technically you need to be 85.5. I'm not sure about that, but it didn't come up in court. It's just my own research.

I think which is why they paid for the blood test.

The officer that arrested me thought that I was an Alcoholic because I didn't seem drunk.

You are correct. I should have put that in my post.
I am just happy to have my licence back and wanted to give hope and advice about CDT test if you're honest about not getting behind the wheel after drinking.

I'm well aware that I messed up and could have hurt someone.
 
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Hi why were you HRO statud
Blowing 85 is not HRO status , so no requirement for CDT unless you had previous convictions or maybe you were missuse or dependent status more info is more helpful

What does dependent status mean regarding being considered to be an HRO?
Recently my girlfriend had a blood test due to her high consumption of alcohol.
The test measured Gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) and the result was high, over 240.
However, there was no mention from the Doctor about her entitlement to drive.
Is there some technical difference between CDT and GGT and if so what is the difference?
 
My problems started with a very high GGT (817 !) after drinking every day for years (1-2 bottles of red wine). Doctor said "Don't drive" and contacted the DVLA immediately. I must have been bad. Ashamed to look back on it and was probably borderline or DUI without thinking it.
 
What does dependent status mean regarding being considered to be an HRO?
Recently my girlfriend had a blood test due to her high consumption of alcohol.
The test measured Gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) and the result was high, over 240.
However, there was no mention from the Doctor about her entitlement to drive.
Is there some technical difference between CDT and GGT and if so what is the difference?

I see quite often that someone quotes HRO because they have to have a medical. Whilst it is right to say that HRO drink drivers do have to have a medical, there are others who have had their
Licenses withdrawn because of alcohol or health concerns who are required to have a medical before it is re instated. This is
Paid for by DVLA, whereas the drink driving medical is paid for.by the offender.
GGT is one of 4 tests that can be used to test Liver Function (hence the abbreviation LFT) the problem is that the LFT does just that - Assesses how your liver is working - and it can be in poor condition for
a variety of reasons. This is used alongside a lifestyle questionnaire to see what is the Most likely cause.
On the other hand a CDT test is much more specific at indicating problem drinking, there are medical reasons for raised CDT but in the main they indicate health problems that are so severe that you probably should not be driving anyway!
 
I see quite often that someone quotes HRO because they have to have a medical. Whilst it is right to say that HRO drink drivers do have to have a medical, there are others who have had their
Licenses withdrawn because of alcohol or health concerns who are required to have a medical before it is re instated. This is
Paid for by DVLA, whereas the drink driving medical is paid for.by the offender.
GGT is one of 4 tests that can be used to test Liver Function (hence the abbreviation LFT) the problem is that the LFT does just that - Assesses how your liver is working - and it can be in poor condition for
a variety of reasons. This is used alongside a lifestyle questionnaire to see what is the Most likely cause.
On the other hand a CDT test is much more specific at indicating problem drinking, there are medical reasons for raised CDT but in the main they indicate health problems that are so severe that you probably should not be driving anyway!

Does this mean that the DVLA automatically consider your driving standard and ability to be inversely proportonal to your CDT level even if you only drive when completely sober and haven't had an accident for 45 years?
Also does this mean that having a raised CDT level makes you drunk when you haven't consumed any alcohol at all?
Despite my girlfriends liver GGT result she is completely sober when she hasn't been drinking.
Seems that the DVLA can't tell the difference between a seriously drunk driver and a completely sober driver.
 
This seems rather pointless as you clearly have not read my post. DVLA do NOT use raised GGT that your girlfriend has as an indicator, and raised CDT is almost always an indicator of elevated alcohol consumption.
You use the words “drunk driver.” A convicted person is a drink driver and is seldom actually a drunk driver. The risk factors are about alcohol impairing your judgement.... to drive .....and then how you drive when you do.
When a High Risk Offender is due to get his/her licence back, they will be aware that they are about to be tested medically for their fitness to drive... yet some still continue to drink quantities of alcohol. Common sense would say to abstain or drink low amounts to prepare for the test. If people lie about their consumption and are later found to have lies, this obviously can impact in the decision made.

The CDT test relates to alcohol consumption in recent weeks, plus the medical questionnaire and where appropriate an enquiry with your GP. These in combination are used by a medical panel to assess the risk that a person poses to have their licence restored. The same type of process is used to assess fitness to drive with people who have other medical conditions such as epilepsy or type 1 diabetes and have had their licence withdrawn.

Like most agencies, DVLA do not always get it right, which is why there is an appeals process via the Magistrates court for drivers who feel they they have been treated unreasonably.
 
Thanks Mr Price for your reply.
My girlfriend had blood tests purely due to concerns over her high alcohol consumption.
You stated that raised CDT is almost always an indicator of elevated alcohol consumption.
That being the case, I cannot understand why the Doctor didn't test her blood for CDT.
However, if they had carried out a CDT test which showed elevated alcohol consumpion, would she have
her licence automatically revoked even though she isn't an offender?
Alternatively, maybe I've become confused and perhaps CDT tests are only carried out for disqualified
high risk offenders.
 
Whilst CDT is pretty mich specific for alcohol, GP’s are interested in the general health of a persons liver and the NHS way is via a Liver Function Test where the 4 tests involved show a broad spectrum of how the liver is functioning.
Consider this analogy:
The police ask for a blood test just for alcohol, because that is what they are interested in, whereas a GP asks for a variety of results from a blood test; because their concern is the general health of their patient.
A GP will normally not notify DVLA of concerns about a patients driving just from a single test, but they would ask the patient to self notify, or failing that, notify DVLA themselves if a patient was deemed to be alcohol dependent and insisted on continuing to drive.
 
Thanks Mr Price for your informative reply.
My girlfriends GGT reading has dropped enormously over the last six months from 240 down to 64.
I think the normal level is around 38.
However, her alcohol consumption is roughly the same as it was over a year ago.
I think her GGT level dropping is due to me stopping her from drinking that dreadful white cider.
My son knew two work colleagues who actually died from drinking the stuff.
Maybe white cider contains some chemicals which are worse for your liver than alcohol.
 
As a Hereford lad, I am offended by the use of the word CIDER with the word white. Cider it certainly is NOT!
I now live in Scotland, where they have minimum pricing of 50p per unit, meaning that a 3 litre bottle of that stuff, at 7.5% would now cost £11.25p. For some reason I haven’t seen anywhere that stocks it!
 
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