HRO licence application

Convicted Driver Insurance

Stuart1980

Member
Hi, I got a HRO last year in June the court dropped my ban from 3 years to 17 months due to my circumstances and alcohol levels I had in my blood.
I had applied to regain my licence over 4 weeks ago, for love not money can I get a hold of the dvla ( I have tried daily for the last two months, many times a day) nor can I apply to get my licence online as the website won’t let me!
Does anyone have any advice regarding this? I really need to get this sorted out
 
Can you explain your circumstances a bit more.
what was you reading in breath / blood or did you refuse to supply a sample?
You say you had a 17 month ban in June, so that would mean you cannot Get your licence back before November, yet you applied 4 weeks ago which does not make sense as that would be way too early and result in them sending your application back unprocessed……
 
price1367 said:
Can you explain your circumstances a bit more.
what was you reading in breath / blood or did you refuse to supply a sample?
You say you had a 17 month ban in June, so that would mean you cannot Get your licence back before November, yet you applied 4 weeks ago which does not make sense as that would be way too early and result in them sending your application back unprocessed……
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I had done the drink driving course, so my van was reduced the 20% it said on the dvla website my ban was due to expire on the 2nd of august. I have a sample both times as I was pretty sure I was not too bad however both readings were in the early 50s for breath.
 
OK, it was the HRO but that threw me, High Risk Iffender is the name given to someone with 2 convictions for drink driving in 10 years, failing to provide or blow 88 or higher……
17 months seems high for a result in breath in the 50’s. 35-59 is usually 16-16 months, with 60-89 attracting 17-23 months.
I fear that you will still have a bit of a wait for your licence back, but at least it will not be dragged out with going through the medical process…..
if you have not had a ‘in charge ‘ offence in the past 10 years as well then you can drive once your ban is up pending the return of your licence. This is under S88 and you can read the conditions here to see if you meet the criteria to drive:
 
price1367 said:
OK, it was the HRO but that threw me, High Risk Iffender is the name given to someone with 2 convictions for drink driving in 10 years, failing to provide or blow 88 or higher……
17 months seems high for a result in breath in the 50’s. 35-59 is usually 16-16 months, with 60-89 attracting 17-23 months.
I fear that you will still have a bit of a wait for your licence back, but at least it will not be dragged out with going through the medical process…..
if you have not had a ‘in charge ‘ offence in the past 10 years as well then you can drive once your ban is up pending the return of your licence. This is under S88 and you can read the conditions here to see if you meet the criteria to drive:
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🤣 I have been convicted twice in ten years.
That’s why I gave 2 readings in the 50s.
I was told on my drink driving course I definitely cannot drive til I have the licence card in my hand.
Also how long should I abstain from drinking before this medical?
 
I am also reading many people have paid £96 to reapply, on the form I received it said it was only £90 could this also be the problem
 
Stuart1980 said:
Hi, I got a HRO last year in June the court dropped my ban from 3 years to 17 months due to my circumstances and alcohol levels I had in my blood.
I had applied to regain my licence over 4 weeks ago, for love not money can I get a hold of the dvla ( I have tried daily for the last two months, many times a day) nor can I apply to get my licence online as the website won’t let me!
Does anyone have any advice regarding this? I really need to get
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I have been waiting since December. Have rung, had at least 4 discussion and lost 2 jobs due to their incompetence. Now 6 months after having test they tell me it wasn't possible to test so starting again !
 
Stuart1980 said:
🤣 I have been convicted twice in ten years.
That’s why I gave 2 readings in the 50s.
I was told on my drink driving course I definitely cannot drive til I have the licence card in my hand.
Also how long should I abstain from drinking before this medical?
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If you have 2 convictions for drink driving in 10 years then the magistrates have no discretion in the matter, they have to give you a 3 year ban. If one was for an “in charge” offence rather than actual driving then the 3 year minimum does not apply, but DVLA treat you as a High Risk Offender and require you to undertake a medical. This process can take many weeks to go through.
 
price1367 said:
If you have 2 convictions for drink driving in 10 years then the magistrates have no discretion in the matter, they have to give you a 3 year ban. If one was for an “in charge” offence rather than actual driving then the 3 year minimum does not apply, but DVLA treat you as a High Risk Offender and require you to undertake a medical. This process can take many weeks to go through.
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This is odd. They did say this on the day at court. However I received a letter from the court stating they had changed it to 17 months and it is also on the Dvla website my ban is up as of the 2nd of August this year. It was originally November however due to completion of the drink drive course it has changed online to 2nd of August
 
As you say… odd! I have seen where the magistrates thought they had to give a 3 year ban and then had it Pointed out to them that as one conviction was ‘only’ for drunk in charge rather that drink driving then the 3 year rule did not apply. That is why I have queried with you to be sure that BOTH convictions were for actual drink DRIVING.
My only other thought is that the 10 year rule is from the date of conviction the first time to the date you are caught the second time, and the magistrates got that wrong. Now if that was the case you will not have to do A medical, but if it is the case that one was for in charge then you will have to have a medical.
 
price1367 said:
As you say… odd! I have seen where the magistrates thought they had to give a 3 year ban and then had it Pointed out to them that as one conviction was ‘only’ for drunk in charge rather that drink driving then the 3 year rule did not apply. That is why I have queried with you to be sure that BOTH convictions were for actual drink DRIVING.
My only other thought is that the 10 year rule is from the date of conviction the first time to the date you are caught the second time, and the magistrates got that wrong. Now if that was the case you will not have to do A medical, but if it is the case that one was for in charge then you will have to have a medical.
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Odd indeed! I have just rechecked, it says my ban is finished. I cannot remember how it worked at the end of the day however I was seen driving but they pulled up a few moments after leaving the car. This could be the case.
Regardless I cannot apply online. I have sent a paper copy to the dvla just over a month ago and it is taking ages.
I did receive a letter shortly after my court telling me I was on the high risk offender category from the dvla.
 
I think that is the answer. You were convicted (luckily for you) of an “in charge “ offence.
it is lazy of the police because with a little bit of work they could probably have easily proved the ‘driving’.
It is correct that your convictions, whilst not triggering the 3 year minimum ban, do trigger the need to have a DVLA medical as a High Risk Offender.
 
Right, next question. I got my letter through from the dvla telling me to expect another letter from the local doctor for a medical.
How long do I need to safely stop drinking for to pass this medical?
I am a daily drinker and can drink a fair bit from time to time, however mainly bottles of cider.
I have the odd day off here and there, and had a month off in June in preparation. However the lengthy delay with the dvla made me think what the hell and start again.
 
Stuart1980 said:
Right, next question. I got my letter through from the dvla telling me to expect another letter from the local doctor for a medical.
How long do I need to safely stop drinking for to pass this medical?
I am a daily drinker and can drink a fair bit from time to time, however mainly bottles of cider.
I have the odd day off here and there, and had a month off in June in preparation. However the lengthy delay with the dvla made me think what the hell and start again.
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If you're a daily drinker and a cider drinker then up to 3 months. It all depends how long this has been your drinking pattern for. Are we talking normal cider at 4% or strong cider over 7%? Depending on the answer to the strength and how long it has been your pattern for.
 
grice96 said:
If you're a daily drinker and a cider drinker then up to 3 months. It all depends how long this has been your drinking pattern for. Are we talking normal cider at 4% or strong cider over 7%? Depending on the answer to the strength and how long it has been your pattern for.
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It is daily bottles of around 3 everyday for the last 2 years
 
Stuart1980 said:
It is daily bottles of around 3 everyday for the last 2 years
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What sort of bottles and what sort of cider? Bottles range from 500ml to 3 litres you would need to be more specific, they also wary widely in strength and that makes a lot of difference.
 
grice96 said:
What sort of bottles and what sort of cider? Bottles range from 500ml to 3 litres you would need to be more specific, they also wary widely in strength and that makes a lot of difference.
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It was always either Henry westons or Katie’s which are either 8% or 7% they are 500 ml. Bottles.
So about 1.5 litres a day to 2 litres a day
 
Stuart1980 said:
It was always either Henry westons or Katie’s which are either 8% or 7% they are 500 ml. Bottles.
So about 1.5 litres a day to 2 litres a day
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1.5 litres a day would leave you at 12 units per day while 2 litres would leave you at 16 units per day. The weekly recommended intake is 14 units per week, you are currently consuming 6-8x that at 84-112 units per week.

If this has been your pattern for 2 years I would air on the side of a minimum of 2 months of abstinence for your CDT levels to return to normal since we do not know your base line. A factor to also consider is your drinking pattern before these 2 years. If your GP ever asked you how much you drank and you said 12-16 units per day you would be diagnosed with alcohol dependence and would have your driving licence revoked. This will be the same at the DVLA medical, if you answer with your actual drinking pattern you will be refused, if you also answer that you don't drink at all and score 1.0 some eyebrows will be raised in the medical department. Consider before getting your licence back, that if you have 2 litres it takes 16 hours for your breath reading to return to 0, starting half an hour after your first drink is consumed and not working out what time you are able to drive at may cost you your licence again. For example if you finish your first cider at 6pm, your breath would be back to 0 at 13:30 the following day, this however is not an exact science and is very much down to your liver health.
 
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