Zydeco Joe Posted December 9, 2020 Posted December 9, 2020 What great service from the DVLA. Last Thursday 4th Dec on line applied for my over 70 licence and today the 9th December got it by post. You cannot fault that for speed. Well done great job. I did agree to lose the "Grandfather" rights i.e the over 3.5 ton limit as that speeded up the process. Am now ok again to drive in Europe as you need the new licence not the 11 months extension given by the DVLA to people who passed their 70th birthday like I did yesterday.
StuartO Posted December 9, 2020 Posted December 9, 2020 My wife’s 70th crops up before the end of this month and DVLA have said she gets the automatic extension, which will presumably perpetuate the C1 “grandmother” entitlement she has at the moment but apparently that won’t work for driving abroad and we’re thinking we might be ready to tour again after Easter. She will therefore need the medical in good time for that.
AliB Posted December 9, 2020 Posted December 9, 2020 Mine is due in January so falls outside the automatic extension. I had the medical at the GP surgery, £15. As it was not long ago that I had my eyes tested the optician said a retest was not necessary but charged £10 for form filling! DVLA have had the forms since the 3rd week in November. I did re apply for the full C1 so still waiting.
Conrad Posted December 9, 2020 Posted December 9, 2020 Yes, DVLA gets a lot of stick, but I've never had any trouble. Almost a pleasure to renew road tax on-line, it works so smoothly! By "drive in Europe," i assume you mean the UK bit of it; pretty soon you're likely to need an international driving licence (or two, depending on where you go) to go to continental Europe.
Derek Uzzell Posted December 9, 2020 Posted December 9, 2020 Regarding the 11-months extension and driving in 'Europe', see this recent thread https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Hooray-C1-Licence-/56941/
witzend Posted December 9, 2020 Posted December 9, 2020 Conrad - 2020-12-09 4:31 PM By "drive in Europe," i assume you mean the UK bit of it; pretty soon you're likely to need an international driving licence to go to continental Europe. Reading here I don't think thats the case https://tinyurl.com/y47zvtla
Derek Uzzell Posted December 9, 2020 Posted December 9, 2020 The IDP requirement was discussed here a week ago https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/International-Driving-Permit-IDP-not-required-in-Europe/56940/ The thread contains a couple of links that mention UK licences continuing to be valid in France (eg. this one) https://www.connexionfrance.com/Practical/Transport/UK-driving-licences-will-still-be-valid-for-Britons-in-France-in-2021 but this says "Britons living in France can continue to drive here using their UK licences for a year from January 1, 2021, the British Embassy in Paris has confirmed.” This is not relevant to UK tourists visiting France and - unless the BREXIT negotiations produce a driving licence ‘exemption' for UK tourists driving in France (or in any other EU countriy) from 1 January 2021 onwards, obtaining an IDP would appear to be unavoiddable.
Zydeco Joe Posted December 9, 2020 Author Posted December 9, 2020 France have said we Brits Don't need a IDP so no need for one at this point in time till at least the end of 2021. Portugal are thinking along same line and hope they and Spain follow France.
Derek Uzzell Posted December 10, 2020 Posted December 10, 2020 Zydeco Joe As I said above, the ‘end of 2021’ thing you refer to is a red herring and has nothing to do with IDPs and UK tourists. When BREXIT reared its head originally, it was anticipated that UK drivers visiting EU countries would need IDPs and there wa a rush to Post Offices to obtain them. (I bought one then myself). In fact, it seems that there may be no legal requirement In FRANCE for non-EU drivers visiting that country to have an IDP. This link https://www.autoeurope.com/international-driving-permit-france/ advises as follows DO I NEED AN INTERNATIONAL DRIVING PERMIT IN FRANCE? Americans are allowed to drive a rental car in France without an International Driving Permit (IDP) during their time in the country. Although an international driver's license in France isn't required by law, Auto Europe recommends that you obtain one before traveling abroad as it's an inexpensive document that can be very useful. This is especially true if your vacation or trip will take you to other European countries and states, as some do require that you carry an IDP with you in addition to your valid US drivers license. When you have the international drivers license, your trip is in your hands. You are free to explore and enjoy your time to the fullest. Why not make things easier for yourself?
Conrad Posted December 10, 2020 Posted December 10, 2020 Confusion here I think. Derek's link to an earlier posting by Casimir goes to the government website. You need to follow links which end up saying "You may also need an international driving permit (IDP) to drive in some EU and EEA countries from 1 January 2021. The type of IDP that you may need will depend on the countries you will drive through. Further detail on this will be available later in 2020." By the last sentence I guess by later in 2020 they mean sometime between now and 31 December. Last minute government as usual. Full link is here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/driving-in-the-eu-from-1-january-2021 Derek's third posting links to a car rental site, aimed at US citizens renting cars in France, not really germane to UK motor caravaners going to continental Europe.
crocs Posted December 10, 2020 Posted December 10, 2020 Zydeco Joe - 2020-12-09 12:56 PM What great service from the DVLA. Last Thursday 4th Dec on line applied for my over 70 licence and today the 9th December got it by post. You cannot fault that for speed. Well done great job. I did agree to lose the "Grandfather" rights i.e the over 3.5 ton limit as that speeded up the process. Am now ok again to drive in Europe as you need the new licence not the 11 months extension given by the DVLA to people who passed their 70th birthday like I did yesterday. You may never need a C1 but, if you do in future, it’s worth knowing that you don’t actually lose your ‘grandfather’ rights and can reactivate them at any time subject to medical.
Derek Uzzell Posted December 10, 2020 Posted December 10, 2020 Conrad What you've said in the first part of your posting was covered here (link in my posting of 9 December 2020 6:05 PM above). https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/International-Driving-Permit-IDP-not-required-in-Europe/56940/ The link you refer to in my last posting does indeed refer to Americans wishing to drive a rental car in France, but after 31 December 2020 UK tourists visiting France and driving there should have an equivalent ‘status’ to that of Americans currently. If the webpage’s statement that (for Americans) “...an international driver's license in France isn't required by law”, logically an IDP should not be required by UK motorcaravanners visiting France next year. You’ll note that I said "it seems that there may be no legal requirement In FRANCE for non-EU drivers visiting that country to have an IDP” and I deliberately capitalized “FRANCE”, The webpage specifically dealt with France but highlighted that Americans did need to carry an IDP while renting a car and driving in some other European states and countries.
Geeco Posted December 10, 2020 Posted December 10, 2020 As a regular traveller to Europe/UK prior to the "Zombie Apocalypse" I took the easy way out and purchased an IDP each year, problem solved. Some countries will accept an AU licence but others will not. If you are planning to use rental cars as I do it is up to the rental company and their policy. Again some care some do not so take the easy way out and buy a IDP is my advice. The price of an IDP in comparison to the total cost of your wander around Europe is peanuts. A couple of years ago my son in-law forgot and was refused a rental at Rome Airport . His wife and two teenage siblings were not impressed at the hassle after a 22 hour flight. He did not forget the next year!! cheers,
Derek Uzzell Posted December 11, 2020 Posted December 11, 2020 This early-2019 forum thread discussed IDPs. https://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/International-Driving-Permit-IDP/51393/ It is (and has been) confidently stated generally that, in the event of a ‘no deal’ Brexit, all those EU countries where UK drivers currently do not need to carry an IDP will, post 31 December 2020, make carrying an IDP mandatory. It’s also generally stated that those IDPs will have a 1-year validity. It may well be the case that, after December 2020 if there is a ‘no deal’ Brexit, UK drivers will legally be required to carry an IDP in ALL those EU countries that currently do not demand this. Or - if some of those countries do not currently legally require that ‘tourist’ drivers from non-EU countries carry an IDP, that an IDP will needed to be carried by UK drivers in some EU countries but not in others. But as far as I’m aware this has never been researched. The validity period of a UK-issued IDP and its link to the UK driving licence were also touched on here recently. I have a ‘1968’ IDP issued on 8 March 2019. This has a 3-year validity period (until 28 March 2022 for my IDP). The IDP carries the reference of the UK driving licence that I held in March 2019, but I have an ‘over 70’ licence that needs to be renewed every 3 years and the renewal that took place a few months ago modified my driving licence reference. OK, the modification only involved the 2-figure suffix of the reference changing from “25” to “26”, but does that change invalidate my IDP, or is it irrelevant as the rest of the driving licence reference (17 characters) has not altered?
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