Changes to Provisional Licence Applications

Jamie Daly - 2020-04-08
Changes to Provisional Licence Applications img

The New Year might have been that much-needed encouragement that you needed to finally apply for your provisional licence. However, it is important to note that as of 8th June 2015 the counterpart (the paper version of your driving licence) will be abolished – you will now just simply be provided with a photo card. The government have decided to place a Union Jack Flag on the UK full and provisional licence in England, Scotland and Wales. Ever since the photo card driving licence was introduced in 1998 drivers had to rely on their counterpart licence to prove their driving status. At the moment, learner drivers attending a theory or practical driving test have to bring the counterpart along with the photo card licence in order for a test to be taken.

A Positive Outcome For Provisional Licence Holders

At InsureLearnerDriver we think this is a really positive movement for learner drivers! It is extremely common for learner drivers to attend either a theory test or a driving test forgetting the counterpart, and are therefore turned away and told to re-book for another day (and due to availability usually weeks later). Learning to drive can be stressful enough and the smallest thing can trigger panic for learners. The fact that you have to track down your counterpart licence and bring it to your test is something that we are glad to see the back of this year and we’re sure that you are too! Let us know what you think, do you agree with this or would you rather things stay the same?