Don’t pay unnecessary fees, warns DVLA

The DVLA warns that when applying online for a driving licence or to tax a  vehicle, motorists should always make sure they use the official Gov.uk site.

DVLA has been made aware of several websites offering a check and send service for driving licence or vehicle tax applications. Some sites exaggerate the nature of the services they provide, or deliberately underplay the services that people can get for free or at a lower cost from official sources. These services are in no way affiliated with DVLA. You may come across these websites in the sponsored links or paid-for results section when using online search engines. The Office of Fair Trading has ruled that websites which charge additional fees for services are not acting illegally.

These websites will claim to offer value-added services to ensure your application is correct before you send it to DVLA. However, using this service will mean you can end up paying as much as 3 times the normal price for your driving licence, and all you will receive is a paper application form that has been completed for you.

The government, led by Cabinet Office’s Government Digital Service (GDS) is leading the work between departments and a number of organisations that have a role to prevent websites making misleading claims. They are working with the Advertising Standards Authority, National Trading Standards Body (NTSB), Nominet (the internet registry services provider for all .uk domain names), ‘Which’ and search engine providers such as Google, to raise awareness of this issue and to ensure enforcement action is taken where appropriate. The e-crime unit at NTSB have, on behalf of government, closed down several sites found to be acting fraudently.

Use DVLA’s online driving licence or vehicle tax transaction on Gov.uk By using the online driving licence or vehicle tax services on GOV.UK, you can be sure that you are dealing directly with DVLA and you will not be charged any additional fees. Your driving licence or vehicle tax application will be completed online without the need for a paper application in the majority of cases.

You can find the online driving licence and vehicle tax services in the driving licence and vehicle tax sections of Gov.uk.