Lesson 1 – The role of the DVLA

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is the organisation of the UK government responsible for maintaining a database of drivers in Great Britain and a database of vehicles for the entire United Kingdom. Its counterpart for drivers in Northern Ireland is the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA).

DVLA is responsible for creating and maintaining vehicle records and issuing vehicle registration certificates, collecting vehicle excise duty, providing refunds, and recording keeper, accident, scrapped and theft details.

DVLA is also responsible for creating and maintaining accurate records of all drivers and riders, along with a register of all vehicles entitled to travel on public roads.

History of the DVLA

Previously driver and vehicle licensing requirements in the UK were administered by local authorities. In 1965, the government decided that arrangements should be centralised to increase efficiency and take advantage of new technologies including automated data processing. Swansea was chosen in consultation with the Department of Employment.

In 1973, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Centre (DVLC) began registering and licensing all drivers and new vehicles. Initially, 81 regional offices were retained to provide customer facing services.

By 1985, around 95% of all vehicle excise duty licensing transactions were available at more than 4,000 Post Offices® and the number of regional offices reduced to 53. In April 1990, the DVLC became an Executive Agency of the Department of Transport known as the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).

Driver’s medical service

DVLA has a role to assess the medical fitness of drivers in Great Britain with the aim of keeping the roads safe. The current licensing system places an obligation on the driver to notify DVLA of any medical condition which may affect their fitness to drive. When a driver makes this declaration, an investigation is carried out to assess whether or not individuals should retain their entitlement to drive.

*There is no quiz attached to this lesson so mark as complete to move to the next lesson.

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Terms and Conditions

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Refund policy: Once a booking has been confirmed with a trainer directly for either a one-to-one standards check or mock test session you will need to give seven days notice to cancel, otherwise the fee will be lost and a new booking and payment will be required.

NOTE: For all training sessions and mock tests you and your trainer must wear a suitable face covering. Your trainer cannot provide one for you, trainers are only responsible for their own face covering and PPE protection. If a suitable face covering is not in place, your session will be cancelled and the fee will be lost. If you have a medical exception to wearing a face covering, this must be provided as proof of exemption to your Diamond trainer. You must demonstrate that your car has been cleaned, using anti-viral wipes to clean passenger handles inside and outside, the dashboard and any other touch points for the trainer. If your vehicle is not fit for purpose your session will be cancelled and the fee will be lost.

Candidates should not attend a training session or mock test if they are feeling unwell, particularly if they identify core symptoms associated with COVID-19 (such as a persistent cough or fever). We ask candidates to notify the DIA of any possible exposure to, or diagnosis of, coronavirus as soon as possible. If you are unable to take a test due to a COVID-19 diagnosis or possible symptoms, your session will be postponed without losing your fee and you will not be permitted to rearrange your standards check session or mock test within the next 14 days following the cancellation.

Once you have paid for your standards check session and/or mock test, your details will be forwarded to your nominated Diamond trainer local to you, who will be in touch with you within 48 hours (Monday-Friday) with a view to booking you in at a mutually convenient location, date and time. Some flexibility will be required in terms of location, taking into account trainer availability at regional level and where restrictions with COVID-19 may be taking place. Your Diamond trainer will make arrangements to meet via text, email or telephone. We do not have specific meeting locations and your Diamond trainer will discuss any other queries with you once your booking has been made online.

You will need to use your own vehicle for the standards check session and mock test, which is suitable for training and allows for your Diamond trainer to role play a suitable candidate, with the relevant insurance in place to allow for this. All Diamond trainers are qualified ADIs with a Diamond examiner qualification in place. You will need to show relevant insurance cover to your Diamond trainer, either before or on the day of your agreed booking date and time. The vehicle you supply must be both roadworthy and legal for the purposes of the standards check session and mock test and your session will be cancelled if you do not present a suitable car with the relevant insurance. If you are more than 15 minutes late to your standards check or mock test session you will lose your booking and the fee will need to be paid again.

You will be asked to read a number plate at the required distance, full details can be found at www.gov.uk/driving-eyesight-rules. Your standards check or mock test session will be cancelled if you cannot reach these requirements. You will need a current and valid driving licence which will be checked by your trainer should you need to drive as part of your standards check or mock test.

Online classes

To attend the Zoom sessions you will need a PC, laptop or tablet that can run Zoom and must also have a camera and microphone so you are able to participate fully in the sessions. You are responsible for ensuring you can access and navigate zoom and that you have a strong enough internet connection. If you cannot join the session due to technical difficulties, we cannot guarantee that you will be moved to another session. Session dates are subject to change.

During this course you will be placed into small ‘live’ discussion groups and will need to converse. Please be aware of how to mute and unmute your microphone for the general discussions that will also be taking place.