Money expert Martin Lewis is urging all drivers to check a two-digit code on the front of their driving licence.
The Money Saving Expert founder took to his Instagram account to share a little-known tip about photo driving licence cards which could lead to police action or a fine of up to £1,000 if you fail to heed it.
He urged his followers to find their driving licence and check for two digits – ‘4b’ – on the front.
This is the expiry for the photo on your licence. Even though your driving licence itself is valid for decades, the actual photo card has an expiry date, Martin stressed.
He said: “Get your driving licence out and check section 4b on the front.
“Now this is because while your driving licence itself is valid for many decades, the photo licence that you get is only valid for 10 years, and 2.7M of them are expiring this year.
“Section 4b is your expiry date. Ultimately if you’re driving with an expired licence and you get stopped by the police, if you continue not to do what they tell you, you could be fined up to £1,000.
“But if your licence has expired, don’t panic, all you need to do is go online and renew it.
“It costs £14 if you do it online.
“Now I should say you do get reminders and you should be told when your licence is due to expire, but lots of people ignore them or miss them or just don’t do it.
“So I hope this is a waste of time and yours is in date without any problems.
“But just in case it isn’t, have a look at the 4b on your licence.”
Guidance issued by the DVLA backs this up.
It says: “The expiry date of your licence will be shown on the front in section 4b and the expiry date of your entitlements will be shown on the back of your licence.
“The new style licence will look different to the [old] licence. All vehicle categories will be listed on the back of your licence with dates against those you are entitled to drive or ride. “You will not be entitled to drive any category of vehicle that has lines instead of dates. “However, if you have passed a test in a larger vehicle you may still be entitled to drive or ride smaller vehicles of that type which have lines shown instead of dates, for example holders of full category A would be entitled to ride a category A2 vehicle.”
