Driving license cards to be scrapped as digitalised certificates are trialled

17 September 2021, 12:27

By Alice Dear

Plastic driving license cards could be a thing of the past as there is potential for them to move online all together.

Driving license cards could be scrapped altogether as a new digital app is trialled for some drivers.

The research into whether a digitalised driving license could work better than a physical card will start with learners first moving online.

People learning to drive will test out The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency's app first, but the online approach could go on to apply to all license holders.

This is according to The Sun, who report that Government sources say that card licenses could be phased out all together.

• Landline telephones to be axed by 2025 and replaced with digital
• Martin Lewis urges millions of UK drivers to check their licence or risk £1,000 fine
• Driverless cars set for UK roads by end of the year under new plans

MOT details will also be digitalised, with the certificates and systems moving online as well.

Before Brexit, The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency were prevented by the EU from moving licenses online.

Speaking of the trial, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said that the changes would be "fairer, greener and more efficient thanks to our exciting new post-EU freedom".

He added that it would also give the transport sector the chance to move into the "modern age".

It was only in June 2015 when paper driving licenses moved on to plastic cards.

This new information comes after US Apple announced they would be rolling out digital driving licenses on iPhones.

Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Oklahoma, and Utah will become the first states to make the change where drivers will have the freedom to store their license to drive electronically.

• You can get fined £5,000 for singing too loudly in your car, experts warn