Core Revision
Revision aid, not clinical advice. This page is educational material written for exam preparation. It is not a substitute for the current guideline or for clinical judgement, and must not be relied on for the care of any individual. Always check up-to-date national guidance and verify independently before acting on anything here.
The DVLA Reasoner
“How long off the road, and do they need to tell DVLA?” Those two questions come up constantly — in the AKT and the SCA — and the rules are fiddly and easy to muddle. Instead of looking the table up, you’ll reason your way to the answer: is this Group 1 or Group 2? how long off? must they notify? — and the tool will remember the rules you find hard and bring them back until they stick. Every rule here is summarised from the DVLA guide (November 2025 edition); the disclosure rules are from the GMC. Revision aid, not clinical advice — always check the current guideline before treating real patients.
Understand mode: the mental model behind fitness to drive — the two questions, and who is responsible.
The one idea · two questions decide almost everything
For any condition and any driver, the whole assessment collapses to two questions: how long must they stop driving? and do they need to tell DVLA? Answer those two and you have answered the exam. Everything else — Group 1 versus Group 2, who notifies whom — just shapes those two answers.
Tap each card to open it out. These are the two questions to ask of every stem.
Cars & motorcycles
The ordinary licence most people hold. The rules are the more lenient of the two.
e.g. a private car, a motorbikeBuses & lorries (HGV / PCV)
Because they drive larger vehicles for longer, the standards are always stricter — and some conditions (like an ICD) bar Group 2 driving entirely.
e.g. a lorry, a bus/coachWhy is Group 2 stricter? A lorry or bus is heavier, spends far longer at the wheel, and carries far more people — so any lapse of consciousness or judgement is more likely to happen and more catastrophic if it does. That is why the same condition buys weeks off for a car driver but months, years, or a permanent bar for Group 2.
Who is responsible?
The patient notifies; the doctor advises. Doctors do not report most patients to DVLA — GMC guidance is to explain that they must, and to record that advice. Two exceptions are worth knowing (GMC, Confidentiality: patients’ fitness to drive and reporting concerns to the DVLA or DVA, 2017): if a patient cannot understand the advice (for example, because of dementia), the doctor should inform DVLA as soon as practicable; and if a patient continues to drive when they may not be fit to, despite every reasonable effort to persuade them to stop, and this exposes others to a risk of death or serious harm, the doctor should contact DVLA promptly and disclose the relevant medical information — trying to tell the patient beforehand, and confirming it to them in writing afterwards.
Pick a condition and which group they drive, then work actively to the answer — predict how long off and whether to notify, commit, then reveal the rule (summarised from the DVLA guide). This is thinking through the case, not looking it up.
At a glance · the whole fitness-to-drive table
Every condition against the three columns that matter: the Group 1 rule, the Group 2 rule, and whether DVLA must be told. Tap any cell for the full rule and any note; switch on Test me to predict it yourself; tap a colour in the key to spotlight the pattern; or tap a column heading, or a condition, for a rule of thumb.
Cells show the usual minimum time off for the common scenario; the popover carries a fuller summary of the DVLA rule and any nuance. Group 2 rules are summarised. Periods lengthen with extra risk factors or incomplete recovery. For revision, not for use in clinic — check the current DVLA guide before advising a real patient.
AKT Pattern · the classic traps
- Successful angioplasty (PCI) = 1 week off, no need to tell DVLA — not the 4 weeks people assume.
- Single TIA or stroke = 1 month off, and no need to notify if fully recovered at one month (multiple TIAs = 1 month off after each episode, still no notification).
- Pacemaker insertion: tell DVLA (1 week off) — but a simple box/battery change does not need notifying.
- An ICD bars Group 2 driving permanently, and means 6 months off Group 1 if fitted after a ventricular arrhythmia.
- Insulin must be notified (unless temporary, e.g. gestational diabetes); diet-controlled diabetes need not be. A single severe hypo while driving means stop and tell DVLA.
- A simple faint is fine — no restriction if it had a reliable prodrome and did not happen while driving (at the wheel: 1 month off, no notification for a single episode); unexplained loss of consciousness means 6 months off and notification.
The duty to notify is the driver’s — the doctor’s duty is to advise and record it
Doctors don’t report most patients to DVLA; GMC guidance is to explain that the patient must, and to record that advice. Two exceptions are worth knowing (GMC, Confidentiality: patients’ fitness to drive and reporting concerns to the DVLA or DVA, 2017): if a patient cannot understand the advice (for example, because of dementia), the doctor should inform DVLA as soon as practicable; and if a patient continues to drive when they may not be fit to, despite every reasonable effort to persuade them to stop, and this exposes others to a risk of death or serious harm, the doctor should contact DVLA promptly and disclose the relevant medical information — trying to tell the patient beforehand, and confirming it to them in writing afterwards. For the exam, anchor on the two questions and you’ll rarely go wrong.
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Take this further
This tool is free. If you are preparing for the MRCGP AKT, the full course puts the same reasoning into exam-style questions: a question bank with Core Lens and Deep Dive explanations, a Core Calendar revision plan built around your exam date, and Core Compass to show you which topics need you next.
Questions? Email admin@corerevision.com
Based on the DVLA guide Assessing fitness to drive (November 2025 edition). Sources last checked October 2026. A revision aid — always check the live guidance at gov.uk for real decisions.
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Core Revision Ltd is an independent educational platform and is not affiliated with the RCGP or the DVLA.
Written by practising UK GPs for exam revision. Sources are cited on this page and corrections are logged. Education only — always confirm against current guidance. Core Revision is an independent revision resource.