Annex 2: fitness to drive
Source: gov.uk (2025-11-28)

This annex explains when people and healthcare professionals must notify the relevant agency about conditions such as alcohol use disorders that may affect driving safety.

Reporting responsibilities for people with harmful drinking and alcohol dependence

The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) guidance Drug or alcohol misuse or dependence: assessing fitness to drive (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/drug-or-alcohol-misuse-or-dependence-assessing-fitness-to-drive) states that “persistent alcohol misuse” and alcohol dependence are conditions that can affect a person’s fitness to drive safely. This means they must not drive and must notify DVLA.

DVLA’s general information for medical professionals about assessing fitness to drive (https://www.gov.uk/guidance/general-information-assessing-fitness-to-drive) helps healthcare professionals and doctors understand their roles and responsibilities for assessing fitness to drive.

This guidance says that:

“Applicants and licence holders have a legal duty to:
- notify DVLA of any injury or illness that would have a likely impact on safe driving ability (except some short-term conditions that are unlikely to continue beyond 3 months)
- respond fully and accurately to any requests for information from either DVLA or healthcare professionals
- comply with the requirements of the issued licence, including any periodic medical reviews indicated by DVLA”
This guidance also says that:

“Doctors and other healthcare professionals should:
- advise the individual on the impact of their medical condition for safe driving ability
- advise the individual on their legal requirement to notify DVLA of any relevant condition
- treat, manage and monitor the individual’s condition with ongoing consideration of their fitness to drive
- notify DVLA when fitness to drive requires notification but an individual cannot or will not notify DVLA themselves”
Similar rules apply in Northern Ireland for notifying the Driver and Vehicle Agency (DVA). You can read more about this at How to tell DVA about your medical condition (https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/how-tell-dva-about-your-medical-condition).

Healthcare professionals reporting concerns to DVLA or DVA

The DVLA guidance acknowledges the challenge for healthcare professionals on issues of consent and to the relationship with their patient when notifying DVLA if a person cannot or will not notify DVLA themselves. It directs healthcare professionals to General Medical Council (GMC) guidance Confidentiality: patients’ fitness to drive and reporting concerns to the DVLA or DVA (https://www.gmc-uk.org/ethical-guidance/ethical-guidance-for-doctors/confidentiality---patients-fitness-to-drive-and-reporting-concerns-to-the-dvla-or-dva).

Healthcare professionals considering notifying DVLA or DVA of the person’s condition should read the GMC guidance before taking this action.

The GMC guidance sets out the steps a doctor should take to inform decisions about disclosing relevant medical information directly to DVLA or DVA when a person’s failure or refusal to stop driving exposes others to a risk of death or serious harm. The guidance recognises the duty of confidentiality doctors owe to their patients but also acknowledges their wider duty to protect and promote the health of patients and the public.

Drug or alcohol misuse or dependence guidance

DVLA’s guidance ‘Drug or alcohol misuse or dependence: assessing fitness to drive’ will help clinicians to give appropriate advice to people with alcohol dependence or drinking at harmful levels.

People who drink heavily and daily may not appear or feel intoxicated because they will have developed tolerance to alcohol. Tolerance is the need to drink more alcohol to get the same or desired effect, and it develops in people who drink heavily and regularly. They are likely to be over the legal driving limit on a daily basis and should be advised not to drive and to notify DVLA (or DVA) about their condition. The practitioner should explain that although they may not feel intoxicated, their functioning and judgment will still be affected.