MightyMouse
Member
I am classified as a High Risk Offender having been convicted of being drunk in charge, way over the limit over 12 years ago. At the end of a 3 year ban I eventually had my 10 year licence re-instated.
I also occasionally suffer from withdrawal seizures after relatively short periods of heavy drinking and will come into the category of dependency based on this and the answers my GP gave in the form they filled in last year (they have not yet written to the GP this time). I am in the process of re-applying for my licence having had a seizure in August last year and got to the point where I was driving again as my GP was satisfied that I was fit to drive after a seizure free 12 months. As I suspected I have eventually received a letter asking me to go for a medical, but the letter also states that if there is a history of dependence I have to show abstinence. This has not been the case on previous occasions and this is the first I have heard of it.
Are the DVLA within their legal requirements to retrospectively apply conditions on my licence being renewed?
It is likely that I will pass the CDT test in the medical but I don't need to be abstinent to be able to drink sensibly (I can have a glass of wine with a meal or a half measure of 20% alcohol at bedtime to help get me to sleep when necessary without continuing through the bottle or waking up the next day needing a drink). I cannot truthfully answer questions about when I last had an alcoholic drink and how much I might drink in a typical week without stating that I have not been abstinent for a year.
Had I been notified of changes in the requirements/law? I would have had the choice of abstaining at the risk of a year of sleep deprivation (I suffer from depression and am already prescribed sleeping tablets but they don't always work).
I would be grateful for advice from a legal point of view and on whether I should contest the requirement before I have the medical and risk my licence being revoked. I was originally intending to post this in the legal thread but see that this is no longer operational so would also appreciate hearing about the experience of anyone who has been in a similar situation. I don't want to lie if I am asked questions at the medical and my GP knows that I drink occasionally although I don't know if it is on record as she doesn't know about the requirement for abstinence.
I also occasionally suffer from withdrawal seizures after relatively short periods of heavy drinking and will come into the category of dependency based on this and the answers my GP gave in the form they filled in last year (they have not yet written to the GP this time). I am in the process of re-applying for my licence having had a seizure in August last year and got to the point where I was driving again as my GP was satisfied that I was fit to drive after a seizure free 12 months. As I suspected I have eventually received a letter asking me to go for a medical, but the letter also states that if there is a history of dependence I have to show abstinence. This has not been the case on previous occasions and this is the first I have heard of it.
Are the DVLA within their legal requirements to retrospectively apply conditions on my licence being renewed?
It is likely that I will pass the CDT test in the medical but I don't need to be abstinent to be able to drink sensibly (I can have a glass of wine with a meal or a half measure of 20% alcohol at bedtime to help get me to sleep when necessary without continuing through the bottle or waking up the next day needing a drink). I cannot truthfully answer questions about when I last had an alcoholic drink and how much I might drink in a typical week without stating that I have not been abstinent for a year.
Had I been notified of changes in the requirements/law? I would have had the choice of abstaining at the risk of a year of sleep deprivation (I suffer from depression and am already prescribed sleeping tablets but they don't always work).
I would be grateful for advice from a legal point of view and on whether I should contest the requirement before I have the medical and risk my licence being revoked. I was originally intending to post this in the legal thread but see that this is no longer operational so would also appreciate hearing about the experience of anyone who has been in a similar situation. I don't want to lie if I am asked questions at the medical and my GP knows that I drink occasionally although I don't know if it is on record as she doesn't know about the requirement for abstinence.
