Drivers are calculated to collectively save up to £150 million over the next 10 years as the cost of getting a driving licence is slashed, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander and Transport Minister Claire Perry have announced.
Driving licence fees will fall by up to 32% as part of the Government's commitment to deliver savings to the taxpayer.
The changes, which follow a recent public consultation, came into force on Friday, 31st October.
Drivers applying online will see the fee for a provisional driving licence fall from £50 to £34 (postal application £43) and online renewals after 10 years fall from £20 to £14 (postal application £17). The fee for driver tachograph cards – used by businesses to record how far their staff are driving – will fall from £38 to £32 (postal service only).
DVLA is reviewing all fees and the reduction in driving licence fees is a result of the first part of this ongoing review. Other fees being considered in the review include vehicle first registrations and duplicate registration certificates.
A million ‘first licence’ applications are processed every year and the fees drop will save new drivers £82.2 million over 10 years. In addition 2.1 million photocard licences are renewed every year and the changes will save motorists £61.3 million over a decade. Businesses make another 85,500 renewals a year and will save £2.44 million over 10 years while the cost savings to tachographs will save another £3.58 million over the decade.