Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency
FOI - D16
DVLA
Longview Road
Swansea
SA6 7JL
Mr T Rogers
[email address]
Email
[DVLA request email]
Website
www.direct.gov.uk/motoring
Your Ref
Request-30501-0dbe584
Our Ref
FOIR1877
Date:
25 March 2010
Dear Mr Rogers
We are writing in response to your request for information made under the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA).
You asked
I was hoping that you would be able to break down the parts which make up the
excessive cost (£50) of obtaining a provisional driving licence at the age of 17.
The cost seems excessive and I was hoping you could explain why it costs this amount.
DVLA is required by Parliament to ensure the costs of issuing driving licences are fully
covered by the fees charged, without making a profit or a loss. The arrangement ensures
DVLA is able to continue to issue licences free of charge following a change of address/name
notification and for medical and over 70 renewals. In addition, licence fees have been
abolished for professional (bus and lorry) drivers, and those adding entitlement following a
driving test pass.
You may be interested to know that DVLA sets its fees to cover operational costs. Section
102 Pooling Order (October 2003) allows for Driver and Vehicle costs to be pooled. The pool
covers the costs of maintaining the Driver and Vehicle register. For example, where a fee is
charged for a first provisional licence, the revenue received would also be required to pay for
other services and updates to the register that DVLA provides free of charge (renewal at 70
and over etc).
Whilst the actual cost of producing and despatching a driving licence is held, it is exempt
from disclosure as it falls under section 43 (2) of the FOIA commercial interests. The cost of
producing and despatching a driving licence is commercially sensitive information as the
DVLA occasionally provides card protection services to other organisations. Providing costs
may compromise DVLA’s position in future procurement exercises. In relying on the
exemption at Section 43 (2) of the FOI, DVLA has had to consider the public interest in the
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disclosure or withholding of this information. The table attached at Annex A provides further
details of the Public Interest Test.
However, we can tell you that in producing a photocard licence DVLA takes into account the
following costs:-
Postage
Staff Costs
Card Material
Cost of collecting data
Accommodation costs
General overheads
The information supplied to you continues to be protected by the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act 1988. You are free to use it for your own purposes, including any non-
commercial research you are doing and for the purposes of news reporting. Any other re-use,
for example commercial publication, would require the permission of the copyright holder.
Most documents supplied by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency will have been
produced by Government officials and will be Crown Copyright. You can find details on the
arrangements for re-using Crown Copyright on the Office of Public Sector Information
website at:
http://www.opsi.gov.uk/click/use/index.htm.
If you are unhappy with the decisions made by this Agency in relation to your request, you
may ask for an internal review. If you wish to complain, you should write to FOI D/16,
DVLA, Swansea, SA6 7JL, or by e-mail, [DVLA request email]
If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have the right to apply
directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Please see attached details of the
complaints procedure and your right to complain to the Information Commissioner.
If you have any queries about this letter, please contact us using the details above. Please
remember to quote the reference above in any future communications.
Yours sincerely
Freedom of Information
DVLA
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