I passed my bike test in the 80’s, then never bothered with it.
I’ve been thinking about getting a bike and just realised i have no bike categories on my licence at all. It starts at cat B.
Has anyone else lost any categories? or gained any?
I bet the DVLA don’t have a record of it.
limeyphil:
I passed my bike test in the 80’s, then never bothered with it.
I’ve been thinking about getting a bike and just realised i have no bike categories on my licence at all. It starts at cat B.
Has anyone else lost any categories? or gained any?
I bet the DVLA don’t have a record of it.
This has happened quite a lot, you could try contacting DVLA but unless you have any documentation ( and even then!) I wouldn’t hold out to much hope.
You’ll probably have to take your test again…and it’s harder now or at least there’s more involved.
Hiya…i think DVLA maybe do a cross check to see if you still have a bike
in your name, i’ve herd of a few people loosing the bike category.
i,ve always had a bike in my name although it been a £30 quid wreck,
i have 7 now 4 been road worthy.
On the note about having the bike licence taken away, a few years back, maybe 10
a bike copper had a crash, when they checked his licence the bike part had been removed.
it was thought because he hadn’t had a bike registered to him for a while as he was
riding police bikes, not bikes in his name. i bet he got off with been nicked.
John
Viz top tips: Always take a photocopy of your licence any time you have to send it off. 
Héraultais:
Viz top tips: Always take a photocopy of your licence any time you have to send it off.
Or keep the original…and say you had a washing machine accident
There was a story years ago about a motorcycle instructor who lost his A entitlement when he moved house.
He sent them a photocopy of his licence - kept for insurance purposes for his job - and they refused it as proof.
He sent them his last 5 yrs p45’s showing him as a riding instructor, still not proof.
He re-sat his test. 
I let my HGV 1 lapse for about 12 years. When I re-applied for it I got back a HGV2.
Wasn’t bothered, as by then I was retired anyway.
Remember reading a thing around 2009/2010 when the first photocard licences were up for renewal quite a few people lost there bike entitlement but was re instared after informing the dvla.
limeyphil:
I passed my bike test in the 80’s, then never bothered with it.
I’ve been thinking about getting a bike and just realised i have no bike categories on my licence at all. It starts at cat B.
Has anyone else lost any categories? or gained any?
I bet the DVLA don’t have a record of it.
I did the same as you and contacted DVLA about 10yrs ago, I gave them the month and year in the 80s that I took the test, and even the Examiners name, they said the records were too far back and I would need a re.test.
limeyphil:
I passed my bike test in the 80’s, then never bothered with it.
I’ve been thinking about getting a bike and just realised i have no bike categories on my licence at all. It starts at cat B.
Has anyone else lost any categories? or gained any?
I bet the DVLA don’t have a record of it.
The DVLA will have a record of it but as it was before 1997 it will be a paper record (I think it was 1997 when they moved to Swansea), it will be one of tens of thousands of paper records that was never digitised, just boxed up and stored in a room in Swansea
I’ve never had a problem with DVLA but a few years ago there was a BBC Watchdog program about their blunders, some of the people could prove they had entitlements that had been wiped of their licence but it made no difference, I think the motorcycle instructor mentioned by waynedl was one of them.
waynedl:
There was a story years ago about a motorcycle instructor who lost his A entitlement when he moved house.He sent them a photocopy of his licence - kept for insurance purposes for his job - and they refused it as proof.
He sent them his last 5 yrs p45’s showing him as a riding instructor, still not proof.
He re-sat his test.
These tossers need taking to court with good legal backing.
They seem to think that because they are a government agency, they are beyond reproach.
Another piece of Britain that’s not Great.
limeyphil:
I passed my bike test in the 80’s, then never bothered with it.
I’ve been thinking about getting a bike and just realised i have no bike categories on my licence at all. It starts at cat B.
Has anyone else lost any categories? or gained any?
I bet the DVLA don’t have a record of it.
This happened to someone I work with, the result being he had to re-take his test, sorry to be the bearer of bad news unless you have an old license where you can prove entitlement you will have to do the same.
Same happened to me , but only noticed 15 years back and could not find any proof to get it back.
Klunk
* scurries off to check his licence …
3300John:
Hiya…i think DVLA maybe do a cross check to see if you still have a bike
in your name, i’ve herd of a few people loosing the bike category.
i,ve always had a bike in my name although it been a £30 quid wreck,
i have 7 now 4 been road worthy.
On the note about having the bike licence taken away, a few years back, maybe 10
a bike copper had a crash, when they checked his licence the bike part had been removed.
it was thought because he hadn’t had a bike registered to him for a while as he was
riding police bikes, not bikes in his name. i bet he got off with been nicked.
John
I doubt the cross check if they did most of us will loose our Hgv
A while ago* it was agreed that the old photocard licence would be returned on request (with an 'ole punched through the pic), providing a SAE was enclosed.
I asked and supplied a SAE. ■■■■■■■ never sent me the cancelled card back! 
*rewind to Dec 2009: motorcyclenews.com/MCN/News/ … ence-chaos
emmerson2:
I let my HGV 1 lapse for about 12 years. When I re-applied for it I got back a HGV2.
Wasn’t bothered, as by then I was retired anyway.
Somebody I once knew sent his Class3 for renewal (the old brown book type in 80s) and got a Class 1 back 
, ok it was a long time ago, but he drove artics until he retired 
chester1:
3300John:
Hiya…i think DVLA maybe do a cross check to see if you still have a bike
in your name, i’ve herd of a few people loosing the bike category.
i,ve always had a bike in my name although it been a £30 quid wreck,
i have 7 now 4 been road worthy.
On the note about having the bike licence taken away, a few years back, maybe 10
a bike copper had a crash, when they checked his licence the bike part had been removed.
it was thought because he hadn’t had a bike registered to him for a while as he was
riding police bikes, not bikes in his name. i bet he got off with been nicked.
JohnI doubt the cross check if they did most of us will loose our Hgv
hiya …its all down to training again…some bike riders who have never ridden for
maybe 30 years come into some cash, they go out to buy a rocket on two wheels
nothing like they rode in the 60s…5 mins later dead. People who have been constantly
rideing have kept up with the faster bikes and worsened driving standards.
i know of plenty of chaps who have stayed with a bike they never had a issue with loosing the bike catagory. ti dosn’t take much time to cross check things now a days.
On the HGV subject. you can’t loose that licence its the medical that runs out in most cases. there has been a expiry limit set on that licence now due to retraining.
john
waynedl:
There was a story years ago about a motorcycle instructor who lost his A entitlement when he moved house.He sent them a photocopy of his licence - kept for insurance purposes for his job - and they refused it as proof.
He sent them his last 5 yrs p45’s showing him as a riding instructor, still not proof.
He re-sat his test.
You couldn’t make it up could you, only in blighty.