£1000 fine for having out of date photographs on driving licences

More than 1.6m UK drivers could be risking fines of up to £1000 for having out of date photographs on the driving licences.  It is a  DVLA requirement that photos on licences are renewed every 10 years at a cost to the licence holder of £20, but Sainsbury’s car insurance, through a freedom of information request, have discovered that 41% of drivers in the UK are seemingly oblivious to the consequences of having a lapsed photo.

The insurance arm of the supermarket has also found out, however, that as many as a third of licence holders are aware it has expired, but don’t plan to do anything about it. It is also estimated that a further 10, who are eligible to drive within the UK are completely unaware that licences do expire, with around 14% of drivers holding licences that are at least 2 years out of date.

Ben Tyte is the chief of Sainsbury’s car insurance, and he says that seeing that the photo driving licence was first introduced in 1998, its not surprising that those issued with the first licences will not remember that their photos need updating. He added that they were encouraging drivers to check when their licence was issues and ensure that they arrange to have their photos updated to avoid the hefty £1000 fine.

Sainsbury’s have also said that only 29% of drivers were  aware that a lapsed licence could land you a fine, and 31% wrongly believe that this would invalidate your insurance. 27% thought that the penalty was points on the licence as opposed to a fine, but this is only the case if the driver is disqualified or has been told they can’t drive by the DVLA.