DVLA Scam

LeeUK · 19 Apr 2021 at 18:15

My photocard licence is due for renewal and I've received a letter in the post to go online and renew it by allowing them access to my passport.

I do this but the renewal fails, turns out DVLA can no longer access signatures from passports. Why do the DVLA not say this and why do they carry on sending letters out telling people to renew online with their passport when you can't?

Is this a scam to get you to pay the higher manual renewal/post office charge?

LeeUK · 19 Apr 2021 at 18:45

LeeUK · 19 Apr 2021 at 19:27

dLockers said:
Ah yes, I can just imagine the board meeting now. "Chaps, any good ideas to get more money despite the fact we are all salaried employees at the bottom of the rung?", "Yes I do fella, let's write off the millions invested in linking up the DVLA with the passport department (ya know, the thing we did because everyone moans why all the systems aren't integrated and exclaim that they already told us this elsewhere!) and start watching the cash roll in from manual forms sent through the post!"

Brilliant. The greatest minds worked that one up.

It's true though. If you have a passport issued since around 2019 the DVLA can't access the photo and signature from it.

LeeUK · 19 Apr 2021 at 19:40

dLockers said:
Where did you get that information from? Presumably it sheds a bit more light on why as opposed to it being a scam.

I say it's a scam as they are not telling the public about this fact and have done nothing in the 2 years to re-code their systems to be able to access the info.

LeeUK · 19 Apr 2021 at 20:21

Rilot said:
Odd, I renewed my license about 2 weeks ago and did it all online, giving them my passport details as you describe.
It was fast and easy.

koolpc said:
Me too, about 5 weeks ago.

OK, but when was your passport last issued? It's a problem with passports from the last couple of years. Is your photo and signature on the same page?

LeeUK · 20 Apr 2021 at 07:02

The official gov.uk site.

LeeUK · 20 Apr 2021 at 17:01

Diffidently not working, just tried again....

LeeUK · 20 Apr 2021 at 17:19

Passport was only issued in 2019.

LeeUK · 20 Apr 2021 at 17:42

Just phoned them up but all they did was fob me off with an email with a link back to the exact same page.

LeeUK · 20 Apr 2021 at 19:06

Robzere31 said:
I renewed my driving licence on-line using my passport back in January 2021. Passport only had 7 months left to run & it was fine.
Got my new licence in around 10 days.

Old passports work find. New ones don't.

LeeUK · 21 Apr 2021 at 18:59

Could it be because the Gov website is filling in my address with a dot after the 'St' (Saint Name Terrace) in my street address where as my old photocard licence does not have the dot after the 'St' on it?

If so then scam still stands as this is just stupid and there is no other way to manually type your address.