Recommendation 5

The DVLA’s system to process applications from customers who have notified it of relevant medical conditions is slow, inefficient and in need of major improvement. Processing times for applications that involve the DVLA making a medical decision are far longer than for other applications, with many decisions taking a year or more. At the time we took evidence in November, the DVLA expected to clear its remaining backlog of such applications by January 2023, returning to meeting its target of processing at least 90% of these applications within 90 working days. But in our view even 90 working days is too long for customers to wait. Customers experiencing problems after notifying the DVLA of medical conditions have been the main source of complaints to the DVLA since 2018–19, and we are concerned that the DVLA’s poor service discriminates against its more vulnerable customers. The Department acknowledges that the legislative framework for medical licensing has not been reviewed for decades. The DVLA’s decisions often require information from GPs and other medical professionals, which is requested and returned using paper documentation. The DVLA intends to introduce modern, digital communications to speed up information exchange with the health sector but given the technical challenges involved, it is not yet clear to us when and how it will do this. Recommendations: a) The DVLA should in its Treasury Minute confirm that it has resolved the backlog in applications from drivers with notifiable medical conditions as expected, and if not, why it has not and when it will do so. b) By the end of 2024 at the latest, the Department should complete a strategic review of the system to process applications from driving licence customers who have notified it of relevant medical conditions, encompassing both the legislative framework and process management. It should set out its timetable for the review in the Treasury Minute. It should work with the Department of Health and Socia