Licence Revoked for persistent misuse of alcohol

Convicted Driver Insurance

Eyanthe

New Member
Hi

I'm new on here and looking for some advice.

I recently had my licence revoked *Car 6mths Truck 12mths* for persistent misuse of alcohol over the last year. I have not been convicted of any drink driving related offence.

Apparently the evidence against me is the DR1V form I was asked to fill in and the results of two LFT's *liver function tests*. One test was in December and another in April, the results showed a GGT reading of 97 and 54. According to my GP a reading of over 70 is bad but I have his full support.

Can anyone define persistent? I had another test on the day of my revocation which was 28. I have since December lost 4 stones in weight. The DVLA were told of the new result but my appeal has failed.

Can anyone advise....

Thanks
 
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/drug-or-alcohol-misuse-or-dependence-assessing-fitness-to-drive

Be careful of questioners and anything that might hang you for dependence ' at the momment they have claimed persistant missuse# for keeping clear of alcohol pop along to SR sober recovery for support

When you say be careful, I hope you are not implying being untruthful. Remember the DVLA have a duty of care for all road users. If they deem you unfit to drive due to your truthful answers then you are unfit to drive. Changing your answers will not alter that fact and could put others at risk.
 
Hi

I'm new on here and looking for some advice.

I recently had my licence revoked *Car 6mths Truck 12mths* for persistent misuse of alcohol over the last year. I have not been convicted of any drink driving related offence.

Apparently the evidence against me is the DR1V form I was asked to fill in and the results of two LFT's *liver function tests*. One test was in December and another in April, the results showed a GGT reading of 97 and 54. According to my GP a reading of over 70 is bad but I have his full support.

Can anyone define persistent? I had another test on the day of my revocation which was 28. I have since December lost 4 stones in weight. The DVLA were told of the new result but my appeal has failed.

Can anyone advise....

Thanks


This is what the guidance is on alcohol misuse:

[h=3]Guide to definition of misuse[/h]There is no singular definition to embrace all the variables within alcohol misuse – but the DVLA offers the following:
A state that causes, because of consumption of alcohol, disturbance of behaviour, related disease or other consequences likely to cause the patient, their family or society present or future harm and that may or may not be associated with dependence.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/drug-or-alcohol-misuse-or-dependence-assessing-fitness-to-drive
For persistent, I would add the word “ongoing”, hence the reason that DVLA look for normalisation of alcohol indicators for 6 months when driving ordinary vehicles and 12 months in the case of goods vehicles or PCV’s. You can apply again after those times have elapsed... your only other way to get your licence back earlier is to appeal to the Magistrates court against the DVLA decision but you would need a solicitor to do this and it could prove costly as there is no legal aid available for such cases. To be honest, such an appeal seldom succeeds.
 
When you say be careful, I hope you are not implying being untruthful. Remember the DVLA have a duty of care for all road users. If they deem you unfit to drive due to your truthful answers then you are unfit to drive. Changing your answers will not alter that fact and could put others at risk.

Hello sorry certainly was not meant to apply for people to lie# just be very careful as there is a large spectrum of what equates to dependence and a bit of paper questionnaire can sometimes not always be 100% accurate and could be misleading example if asked if you suffer night sweats! Someone whom drinks frequently could answer yes but have a medical issue ie over active thyroid my wife suffers insomnia and sweats buckets every night but is teetotal
Are you alcohol dependent?

It might be surprising to hear that you don’t always have to be drinking to extreme levels to become dependent on alcohol. Anyone who is drinking regularly will have a degree of alcohol dependency.

According to Dr Nick Sheron, a liver disease specialist from Southampton University, alcohol dependency operates on a spectrum. “At one end of the scale you have people who are mildly dependent,” he says. “That’s people who, for example, can’t conceive of a Friday night without having enough drinks to get a bit tipsy. At the other end, you have people where alcohol is more important than their jobs, their families, than pretty much anything, including being alive.”

People who drink heavily tend to keep increasing the amount they drink because they develop a tolerance to alcohol. Tolerance is a physiological response we have to any drug: the more you consume, the more you need to consume to have the same effect.

Part of this dependence is because the wiring in the brain changes with frequent consumption of alcohol. Then, as Dr Sheron says: “This change makes you less able to drink in a controlled way.”

Basicly it's a very fine line sometimes between misuse & dependence which will equate to 1 or 3 yrs revoke from the dvla even mild dependance the dvla will not differentiate
 
Last edited:
Hello sorry certainly was not meant to apply for people to lie# just be very careful as there is a large spectrum of what equates to dependence and a bit of paper questionnaire can sometimes not always be 100% accurate and could be misleading example if asked if you suffer night sweats! Someone whom drinks frequently could answer yes but have a medical issue ie over active thyroid my wife suffers insomnia and sweats buckets every night but is teetotal
Are you alcohol dependent?

It might be surprising to hear that you don’t always have to be drinking to extreme levels to become dependent on alcohol. Anyone who is drinking regularly will have a degree of alcohol dependency.

According to Dr Nick Sheron, a liver disease specialist from Southampton University, alcohol dependency operates on a spectrum. “At one end of the scale you have people who are mildly dependent,” he says. “That’s people who, for example, can’t conceive of a Friday night without having enough drinks to get a bit tipsy. At the other end, you have people where alcohol is more important than their jobs, their families, than pretty much anything, including being alive.”

People who drink heavily tend to keep increasing the amount they drink because they develop a tolerance to alcohol. Tolerance is a physiological response we have to any drug: the more you consume, the more you need to consume to have the same effect.

Part of this dependence is because the wiring in the brain changes with frequent consumption of alcohol. Then, as Dr Sheron says: “This change makes you less able to drink in a controlled way.”

Basicly it's a very fine line sometimes between misuse & dependence which will equate to 1 or 3 yrs revoke from the dvla even mild dependance the dvla will not differentiate

Apologies if I came across as accusing.

Whilst I understand what you have said is it not fair to assume that the DVLA have done their research? Answers to all questions asked would or should weed out the people they feel should not be entitled to a driving licence regarless of the odd question that may relate to something other than alcohol issues.

As you say it is a fine line between misuse and dependence but the amount of alcohol consumed is the issue. If someone needs 10 pints to feel tipsy because they have developed a tolerance it does not alter the fact that they are way way over the limit.
 
You do not have to be drink driving to have your licence revoked a figure of 10 pints means!The poster said he had never been convicted or had drunk driving.
If the dvla suspect proffesional drivers having drinking patterns same or above government health guidelines they will come under scrutiny! Heavy goods licence holders are not allowed samw drinking levels amount weekly as normal drivers if there is a pattern the dvla will enquire further# yes great system for weeding out persistent missuse especially leading towards dependence but with all systems and charts etc there's always a fine line #
DVLA do a fantastic job and claim the UK have the safest roads in Europe which is fantastic if your planning a round trip with your family# this post is informative only and never meant to challenge DVLA or other posters thanks
 
Last edited:
You do not have to be drink driving to have your licence revoked a figure of 10 pints means!The poster said he had never been convicted or had drunk driving.

Absolutely understand that but as I said the DVLA have a duty of care to other road users. If they believe there is a potential risk after someone has filled out their questionnaire I personally stand by their assessment
 
Absolutely understand that but as I said the DVLA have a duty of care to other road users. If they believe there is a potential risk after someone has filled out their questionnaire I personally stand by their assessment
Agreed. However, it is a very vague line between misuse and dependence. Even my GP couldn't or wouldn't comment on this and left it for me to pursue with the DVLA. Naturally, I quoted 'misuse' when I spoke to the DVLA over the phone due to the 6-month wait for an application rather than 12 but there is nothing on the letters or forms to state specifically which you have been labelled with. I guess, because the GP declared me fit to drive within a month, I could reapply after six. ??? My GGT was 815 !!! this should correlate to one or the other.... probably the worse one !
 
I think it would be beyond abuse if your score was 815... perhaps 81.5 was the actual reading. The GGT score is raised with alcohol consumption regularly, but it can also be raised if you have been taking medication regularly that has an effect on your liver, including paracetamol.
A CDT test is a better indicator of alcohol effects on your liver. Have you had one of those? If you do not want to do this through your doctor there is a company that advertises on here for postal tests. They cost £79 and people report that they give accurate results.
 
I think it would be beyond abuse if your score was 815
Yes, it did get a rather sharp reaction from the doctor too who had never seen a reading so high. Just re-read the report, it was 818 IU/L. Probably accounts for the immediate referral to DVLA without discussion or written notice. It was some time ago and was a result of chronic drinking (but aware of it so the rare occasions driving were legal). It normalised within a month of abstinence. Not proud of those days but posting here as it may draw a parallel with others' experiences.

My recent CDT was unknown but it must have been low. If you want any of the other figures from those dark days, I can reel them off. To bring back to the original theme, you definitely can be taken off the road without meaning to with booze.

Bacchus
 
Last edited:
Just to be clear the 98 GGT reading was not related to persistent misuse according to my GP and he says he has told the DVLA this.
 
Enter code DRINKDRIVING10 during checkout for 10% off
Top