DVLA Medical High Risk Offender Licence Application Timescale

[KeyWorker]

Hi all.

After having my medical 22 days ago I was elated to open the post this morning and find my driving licence enclosed! To say I am surprised and shocked is an understatement given the delays some people are having and I certainly didn’t expect any news until the end of July/August time at the earliest. The licence expires in 4 years time but I that’s because my old one expired on the same date and I really didn’t want to faff around with photographs etc to add more time to my application.

Here are my timescales to help others in their journey, which is certainly a difficult and unpredictable one:

Licence applied for - 31/01/2022
Application form received by DVLA - 01/02/2022
Cheque cashed - 03/03/2022
Medical letter received - 30/03/2022
DRIVING BAN ENDS - 02/05/2022
Date of medical - 05/05/2022
Licence issued 25/05/2022

So, all in all 16 weeks and 4 days to receive my licence and just 3 weeks and 3 days after my ban ended. Given how long some people have had to wait I’ve been incredibly lucky. The most stressful part for me was waiting for the medical as I was unable to book it myself and had to wait for the GP surgery to contact me. They said they ’should’ be able to fit me in within the 12 week timescale but they had a long waiting list and that if I missed the phone call they would move on to the next person on the list. I was darn lucky to have a day off work when they called to offer me a cancellation two days later Credit to the GP surgery in sending the paperwork off quickly and thank goodness it didn’t end up in a large postal sack in the corner of the office of the DVLA. The only time I contacted the DVLA was to check if I could change the GP surgery so I could pre-book my medical but they refused. Apart from that call, I didn’t chase anything else up or involve my local MP.

The medical itself was simple - height, weight, feel around the abdomen, listen to chest, blood pressure, look in mouth and check my hands (haven’t worked that one out) and CDT blood test. She asked the questions on the questionnaire to which my last alcoholic drink was 12th February and always less than 6 units when drinking and ”no” to everything else.

Now, car insurance… my husband contacted Admiral as part of a family policy and they will insure me on my own policy for £323 which I think is superb. Zurich refused to insure me. I’m an additional £300 on my husband’s electric car as a named driver.

I hope I’m okay to stay on this group because whilst I haven’t posted that often, I’ve found this site to be a great source of information, some of which have allayed my fears and some that have put the fear of god in me )! Whilst I don’t have great experience in all this, I hope I can offer hope and support to those out there travelling this awfully slow and arduous journey.

Good luck to each and every one of you.

Hi, just a bit of perspective on the hand check!
People who drink excessively may ( not always ) develop very red palms
Also if you are asked to stand with your hands stretched out in front of you ( as I was on both my DVLA Medicals, though both with the same Dr ) they usually require you to maintain that position for around ten seconds, and they are checking for a fine shake, which again can be a sign of alcohol abuse.
I’m a nurse so could work out what it was all about, and even said to him that just thinking about it was enough to make anyone shake. He did have the good grace to smile.
Hope that helps J

 

[Polly3]

Think it wasn't the standard dd2 form it was one for mental health as in my medical I declared I was on cytalopram

I did too . Citalopram. They wrote to GP who gave me copy of form she had to fill in and that said 6 yrs alcohol ,3 yrs mental health .

 

[Tdubs]

Hi all.

After having my medical 22 days ago I was elated to open the post this morning and find my driving licence enclosed! To say I am surprised and shocked is an understatement given the delays some people are having and I certainly didn’t expect any news until the end of July/August time at the earliest. The licence expires in 4 years time but I that’s because my old one expired on the same date and I really didn’t want to faff around with photographs etc to add more time to my application.

Here are my timescales to help others in their journey, which is certainly a difficult and unpredictable one:

Licence applied for - 31/01/2022
Application form received by DVLA - 01/02/2022
Cheque cashed - 03/03/2022
Medical letter received - 30/03/2022
DRIVING BAN ENDS - 02/05/2022
Date of medical - 05/05/2022
Licence issued 25/05/2022

So, all in all 16 weeks and 4 days to receive my licence and just 3 weeks and 3 days after my ban ended. Given how long some people have had to wait I’ve been incredibly lucky. The most stressful part for me was waiting for the medical as I was unable to book it myself and had to wait for the GP surgery to contact me. They said they ’should’ be able to fit me in within the 12 week timescale but they had a long waiting list and that if I missed the phone call they would move on to the next person on the list. I was darn lucky to have a day off work when they called to offer me a cancellation two days later Credit to the GP surgery in sending the paperwork off quickly and thank goodness it didn’t end up in a large postal sack in the corner of the office of the DVLA. The only time I contacted the DVLA was to check if I could change the GP surgery so I could pre-book my medical but they refused. Apart from that call, I didn’t chase anything else up or involve my local MP.

The medical itself was simple - height, weight, feel around the abdomen, listen to chest, blood pressure, look in mouth and check my hands (haven’t worked that one out) and CDT blood test. She asked the questions on the questionnaire to which my last alcoholic drink was 12th February and always less than 6 units when drinking and ”no” to everything else.

Now, car insurance… my husband contacted Admiral as part of a family policy and they will insure me on my own policy for £323 which I think is superb. Zurich refused to insure me. I’m an additional £300 on my husband’s electric car as a named driver.

I hope I’m okay to stay on this group because whilst I haven’t posted that often, I’ve found this site to be a great source of information, some of which have allayed my fears and some that have put the fear of god in me )! Whilst I don’t have great experience in all this, I hope I can offer hope and support to those out there travelling this awfully slow and arduous journey.

Good luck to each and every one of you.

Congratulations!
First day of the rest of your life now

 

[Malina]

I did too . Citalopram. They wrote to GP who gave me copy of form she had to fill in and that said 6 yrs alcohol ,3 yrs mental health .

Yes most of the questions are for 6yrs but then there is that one mentioned above that doesn't state a time so she had to answer yes unfortunately

 

[Battybird72]

Hi, just a bit of perspective on the hand check!
People who drink excessively may ( not always ) develop very red palms
Also if you are asked to stand with your hands stretched out in front of you ( as I was on both my DVLA Medicals, though both with the same Dr ) they usually require you to maintain that position for around ten seconds, and they are checking for a fine shake, which again can be a sign of alcohol abuse.
I’m a nurse so could work out what it was all about, and even said to him that just thinking about it was enough to make anyone shake. He did have the good grace to smile.
Hope that helps J

Oh that's interesting! Never heard of red palms before. Thanks for clarifying that.

 

[Luna2000]

Hi all.

After having my medical 22 days ago I was elated to open the post this morning and find my driving licence enclosed! To say I am surprised and shocked is an understatement given the delays some people are having and I certainly didn’t expect any news until the end of July/August time at the earliest. The licence expires in 4 years time but I that’s because my old one expired on the same date and I really didn’t want to faff around with photographs etc to add more time to my application.

Here are my timescales to help others in their journey, which is certainly a difficult and unpredictable one:

Licence applied for - 31/01/2022
Application form received by DVLA - 01/02/2022
Cheque cashed - 03/03/2022
Medical letter received - 30/03/2022
DRIVING BAN ENDS - 02/05/2022
Date of medical - 05/05/2022
Licence issued 25/05/2022

So, all in all 16 weeks and 4 days to receive my licence and just 3 weeks and 3 days after my ban ended. Given how long some people have had to wait I’ve been incredibly lucky. The most stressful part for me was waiting for the medical as I was unable to book it myself and had to wait for the GP surgery to contact me. They said they ’should’ be able to fit me in within the 12 week timescale but they had a long waiting list and that if I missed the phone call they would move on to the next person on the list. I was darn lucky to have a day off work when they called to offer me a cancellation two days later Credit to the GP surgery in sending the paperwork off quickly and thank goodness it didn’t end up in a large postal sack in the corner of the office of the DVLA. The only time I contacted the DVLA was to check if I could change the GP surgery so I could pre-book my medical but they refused. Apart from that call, I didn’t chase anything else up or involve my local MP.

The medical itself was simple - height, weight, feel around the abdomen, listen to chest, blood pressure, look in mouth and check my hands (haven’t worked that one out) and CDT blood test. She asked the questions on the questionnaire to which my last alcoholic drink was 12th February and always less than 6 units when drinking and ”no” to everything else.

Now, car insurance… my husband contacted Admiral as part of a family policy and they will insure me on my own policy for £323 which I think is superb. Zurich refused to insure me. I’m an additional £300 on my husband’s electric car as a named driver.

I hope I’m okay to stay on this group because whilst I haven’t posted that often, I’ve found this site to be a great source of information, some of which have allayed my fears and some that have put the fear of god in me )! Whilst I don’t have great experience in all this, I hope I can offer hope and support to those out there travelling this awfully slow and arduous journey.

Good luck to each and every one of you.

Did they write to your own GP? From what you have said it doesn't seem so. This added 54 days to my timescale and took me up to 210 days.

Without my GP contact I would have had my licence back in 156 days, which is slightly longer than you.

 

[Battybird72]

Did they write to your own GP? From what you have said it doesn't seem so. This added 54 days to my timescale and took me up to 210 days.

Without my GP contact I would have had my licence

Did they write to your own GP? From what you have said it doesn't seem so. This added 54 days to my timescale and took me up to 210 days.

Without my GP contact I would have had my licence back in 156 days, which is slightly longer than you.

I wouldn't think they contacted my own GP given I had my medical at the start of this month (not unless they contact them prior to your medical?) It seems that contacting your GP and/or the medical GP messing up the forms are the biggest cause of delays.

 

[Battybird72]

Congratulations!
First day of the rest of your life now

Thank you My husband is quite perplexed that I've not driven my car since I've had my licence the past 2 days. I've got to be honest I'm feeling quite overwhelmed by it and I didn't expect that.

 

[Thompson92]

Quick up date on my time frame.

So sent off on the 17th April
Scanned on system 6th May.
Received my medical letter this morning.
Booked medical for the 7th of July.
Ban ends 17th of July.

Fingers crossed I won't be waiting too long driving to Disney land in August.

 

[Darron79]

Hi can anyone who has had to do a urine test at their medical please tell me, do they stand there whilst you pee?? I get proper stage fright so if they do I’ll be unable to piss!! Surely you go behind a curtain or go to the loo??
Yeah it sounds silly but I’m a bit worried.
It doesn’t say on my medical letter that I have to do a urine sample, just a CDT blood test & a questionnaire.
Any help is much appreciated
Many thanks

 

[Darron79]

Hi can anyone who has had to do a urine test at their medical please tell me, do they stand there whilst you pee?? I get proper stage fright so if they do I’ll be unable to piss!! Surely you go behind a curtain or go to the loo??
Yeah it sounds silly but I’m a bit worried.
It doesn’t say on my medical letter that I have to do a urine sample, just a CDT blood test & a questionnaire.
Any help is much appreciated
Many thanks

Also I went to the GP’s for bloods the other day. The nurse was a right butcher!! I left without her being able to get a sample. I have to go back the day after my dvla medical…
This has me worried because what happens if they can’t get blood out of me at my dvla medical?? I’m so bloody worried all this money for nothing. Gonna be cheaper for me to get the Mrs on the road at this rate!!

 

[Dave999]

Quick up date on my time frame.

So sent off on the 17th April
Scanned on system 6th May.
Received my medical letter this morning.
Booked medical for the 7th of July.
Ban ends 17th of July.

Fingers crossed I won't be waiting too long driving to Disney land in August.

Don’t put all your hopes on it mate coz it dose not make a difference to the medical team. There are loads of us out of work . My ban was up 26th april had my medical 5th may. And now I am back in limbo everything still in the system waiting to be looked at .

 

[Dave999]

Hi can anyone who has had to do a urine test at their medical please tell me, do they stand there whilst you pee?? I get proper stage fright so if they do I’ll be unable to piss!! Surely you go behind a curtain or go to the loo??
Yeah it sounds silly but I’m a bit worried.
It doesn’t say on my medical letter that I have to do a urine sample, just a CDT blood test & a questionnaire.
Any help is much appreciated
Many thanks

I went and the dvla only ordered a blood test but I was warned they might ask for a urine and I will have to have another medical because they didn’t order a urine test

 

[Battybird72]

Don’t put all your hopes on it mate coz it dose not make a difference to the medical team. There are loads of us out of work . My ban was up 26th april had my medical 5th may. And now I am back in limbo everything still in the system waiting to be looked at .

I think it's disgusting that you had your medical before me and not heard anything yet mine was all done and dusted with licence issued 3 weeks later. I think all this uncertainty puts so much pressure onto what is already an intolerable situation. We broke the law and we've been punished, end of. We've served our 'time' - prisoners are often released before their sentence dates yet we pass our ban date and are made to suffer more by having a severely substandard government department handling our paperwork. Uttlerly shocking and unforgivable. I sincerely hope that you hear soon.

 

[Dave999]

I think it's disgusting that you had your medical before me and not heard anything yet mine was all done and dusted with licence issued 3 weeks later. I think all this uncertainty puts so much pressure onto what is already an intolerable situation. We broke the law and we've been punished, end of. We've served our 'time' - prisoners are often released before their sentence dates yet we pass our ban date and are made to suffer more by having a severely substandard government department handling our paperwork. Uttlerly shocking and unforgivable. I sincerely hope that you hear soon.

Yeah I know I started my application in January and the delays suck, I was failing to provide a specimen of blood . The doctor in the police station was incompetent but in magistrates court , they basically believe anything the police gives them. If I had known I would have to go though all this I would of gone to crown court. It’s an unknown fact that you are going to be a HRO. I have phone the dvla and been told yes we got all your details medical and bloods scanned in , just waiting for someone to look at them. For anyone else wondering about the cdt my medical doctor told me , it is 2weeks of alcohol the test can pick up on before hand.

 

[Dave999]

Hi, just a bit of perspective on the hand check!
People who drink excessively may ( not always ) develop very red palms
Also if you are asked to stand with your hands stretched out in front of you ( as I was on both my DVLA Medicals, though both with the same Dr ) they usually require you to maintain that position for around ten seconds, and they are checking for a fine shake, which again can be a sign of alcohol abuse.
I’m a nurse so could work out what it was all about, and even said to him that just thinking about it was enough to make anyone shake. He did have the good grace to smile.
Hope that helps J

It can be to check your moter skills also because the medical is not just for HRO it is for people who could have had a stroke or epilepsy.

 

[Darron79]

I went and the dvla only ordered a blood test but I was warned they might ask for a urine and I will have to have another medical because they didn’t order a urine test

So did they ask for a urine test?? Did you have to go back again??

 

[Dave999]

So did they ask for a urine test?? Did you have to go back again??

I phoned them this morning and the medical team worker said she does not think I will need a urine test. I have been getting them done all year through a drug agency. All my medical and blood test is scanned into the system for the last 7 days but still no decision maker has looked at it. This process is a long one

 

[Stedriver]

Had my bloods done 19th April there’s still waiting for them at dvla rang doctors they sent Them 19th April anyone else had something similar? Taking piss now

 

[Randomusername2022]

Hi ive not posted just been following everyone elses journeys, i just wanted to share my time line.

7th January 2022 driving licence application received.

8th January sent it away with Postal order

12th March received medical forms and drs information for booking medical.

14th March Called the drs booked in for medical 6th April.

7th April ban up

Medical received approx 2 weeks later.

GP received questionnaire 23rd May for additional information due to mental health which was the only answer I answered yes to in medical.

Gp was fantastic and completed and returned same day.

30th dvla scanned GP response.

1st June full 10 year licence issued.

To say its been stressful would be an understatement however, screamed, cried and jumped for joy when I saw my online driving status change today! Good luck everyone still waiting
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