Drivers at risk of £1,000 fine for expired photo card licences

Following a Freedom of Information request, Sainsbury's car insurance has discovered that over 1.6 million drivers could be at risk of a £1,000 fine because the photo card on their driving licence has expired. In addition, almost 3 million drivers must renew their photo by the end of 2012 yet many are not aware of this. Sainsbury's car insurance is encouraging all drivers to avoid any risk of incurring a fine by checking the expiry date of their photo card and ensuring it is updated when required.

According to the DVLA, UK drivers are required to update their photo on their photo card driving licence every 10 years and British law requires drivers to do this whether or not they are active drivers. Having an expired photograph on your driving licence carries a £1,000 fine; it could be enforced by the police (under Section 99 of the Road Traffic Act 1988). There is no impact on your car insurance as long as the driver has not been disqualified or told not to drive by the DVLA (due to a medical issue, for example). However, Sainsbury's car insurance is encouraging best practice and is therefore highlighting that all drivers have a responsibility to ensure their licence is kept up to date.

The supermarket bank carried out a further survey and found that fewer than one in three (30% or 487,000) of those drivers with an expired licence are aware that their licence has expired. A further 10 million people do not know when their driving licence expires and 14% (234,984) of expired photo card licences have been out of date since 2009 or before.

The research also revealed that the vast majority of drivers are unaware of the true consequences of having an expired photograph on their driving licence. Just 29% know that it could make you liable for a £1,000 fine, and more men (30%) than women (28%) are aware of this. However almost a third (31%) of drivers incorrectly said they thought it could invalidate your motor insurance and 27% thought it could mean getting points on your licence. Interestingly, 13% of drivers thought it could result in your car being confiscated. Almost half (41%) of motorists admitted to not knowing the consequences of having an expired photograph on their driving licence.

Ben Tyte, Head of Sainsbury's car insurance said: "The photo card driving licence was introduced in 1998 so it's unsurprising that those issued with a licence around that time may not remember that they need to update their photograph. We would therefore encourage all drivers to check when their photo card was issued and ensure that they arrange to update their photo when required to avoid risking a £1,000 fine.

"Drivers should also remember that their photo card licence serves as more than just a driving licence. Should they intend to use it as a form of identification for other things such as hiring a car or an internal flight, for example, having an out of date photograph could cause problems or delays."

Sainsbury's car insurance offers two options of cover, a standard policy and a Premier Cover option. Both products offer some of the widest range of cover and benefits available in the marketplace.

New Sainsbury's car insurance customers could also benefit from double Nectar points on all Sainsbury's shopping in-store, online and in petrol filling stations for two years; the saving equates to the equivalent of 2% off their Sainsbury's purchases when paying along with their Nectar card(3). For example, those spending £49 a week in-store at Sainsbury's could, over a year, earn up to a week's free shopping.

For further information on Sainsbury's car insurance, visit sainsburysfinance.co.uk.