DVLA Medical check - ban off in a month

[Shodre]

Hi,

I come off my ban in one month and I was going to call to book my medical check closer to the date as I had a heavy drinking session on New Years and a few beers yesterday so I thought I would wait until closer to my ban date.

I had a few questions :

I have been reading the forums and i saw a few people have been rejected there license after a medical check because they noted on the questionnaire that they have drank alcohol in the past year? I drank on New Years so shall I say on the questionnaire that I haven’t drank since last New Years instead?

Also two years ago I had choked on my food and been admitted into hospital A&E. I noticed on the questionnaire it also asks ‘have you ever had a seizure’. On my medical records for that day when I was admitted into hospital it says it was due to a seizure where as it is wrong. It says within the report ‘could have been seizure’. Will they check my medical report and see this or shall I answer this as no also?

I had cocaine and Xanax on New Years; is there a chance these show up in my urine or blood test?
is it best to lie on the questionnaire or shall I be honest

Any help will be appreciated highly, thanks.

 

[BigTom]

Hi,

I come off my ban in one month and I was going to call to book my medical check closer to the date as I had a heavy drinking session on New Years and a few beers yesterday so I thought I would wait until closer to my ban date.

I had a few questions :

I have been reading the forums and i saw a few people have been rejected there license after a medical check because they noted on the questionnaire that they have drank alcohol in the past year? I drank on New Years so shall I say on the questionnaire that I haven’t drank since last New Years instead?

Also two years ago I had choked on my food and been admitted into hospital A&E. I noticed on the questionnaire it also asks ‘have you ever had a seizure’. On my medical records for that day when I was admitted into hospital it says it was due to a seizure where as it is wrong. It says within the report ‘could have been seizure’. Will they check my medical report and see this or shall I answer this as no also?

I had cocaine and Xanax on New Years; is there a chance these show up in my urine or blood test?
is it best to lie on the questionnaire or shall I be honest

Any help will be appreciated highly, thanks.

You say you come off your ban in a months time, have you reapplied for your licence and been told you need to book a medical at a specific nominated Doctors? Once you have been sent a letter saying you need to book your medical, you only have 12 weeks from that date to have the medical or they will decline you. Many DVLA approved medical centres have very limited places and are usually only willing to offer a medical on a particular day/date, you might not get to pick and choose when you have it.

If you lie on your forms, and say you haven't had a drink for over a year but the medical/blood test contradicts this, then you are opening all sorts of issues for yourself.

When asked about your medical history, again telling lies will not help. If/when DVLA write to your GP, the GP will confirm what your medical records say.

The DVLA blood test is only for CDT, which analyses your recent drinking patterns with the result. Drug screening is done by the urine test, but they only ask you to do a urine test if you have previous drugs convictions or if they have information on record/from your GP suggesting you have taken drugs in the last 6 years.

Having a one off drinking binge at New Year is unlikely to raise your CDT level, but if you mean you were on a proper bender for a number of days then your CDT could be raised, and depending on what your base line was, it can take a couple of months of complete abstinence for the levels to return to the normal range.

So to summarise, if you have reapplied and have been sent the letter telling you to call the nominated surgery to book your medical, then you need to sort it within the timescale or you will be declined and have to reapply all over again - starting everything back from day 1. If you decide to lie on the official forms, you open yourself up to further scrutiny and even possible prosecution when they prove you lied.

Depending on your medical/questionnaire/GP report, DVLA can decide that you are an alcohol/drug misuser and would require a further 6 months of either complete abstinence, or drinking within government guidelines - with proof (usually LFT tests from your GP on a regular basis). They could also decide you are dependent, then they would require a full 12 months complete abstinence, again with proof. You really need to decide if these are possible outcomes for you, as only you know your history...

 

[Stuntinrik]

Hi,

I come off my ban in one month and I was going to call to book my medical check closer to the date as I had a heavy drinking session on New Years and a few beers yesterday so I thought I would wait until closer to my ban date.

I had a few questions :

I have been reading the forums and i saw a few people have been rejected there license after a medical check because they noted on the questionnaire that they have drank alcohol in the past year? I drank on New Years so shall I say on the questionnaire that I haven’t drank since last New Years instead?

Also two years ago I had choked on my food and been admitted into hospital A&E. I noticed on the questionnaire it also asks ‘have you ever had a seizure’. On my medical records for that day when I was admitted into hospital it says it was due to a seizure where as it is wrong. It says within the report ‘could have been seizure’. Will they check my medical report and see this or shall I answer this as no also?

I had cocaine and Xanax on New Years; is there a chance these show up in my urine or blood test?
is it best to lie on the questionnaire or shall I be honest

Any help will be appreciated highly, thanks.

Where did you read that people have failed for saying they have drank in the last 12 months? I have my medical coming up so would need more info on this. Maybe the people that have failed have history of dependence or they declared that they had over the reccomended units.

 

[Callumrayb]

Hi,

I come off my ban in one month and I was going to call to book my medical check closer to the date as I had a heavy drinking session on New Years and a few beers yesterday so I thought I would wait until closer to my ban date.

I had a few questions :

I have been reading the forums and i saw a few people have been rejected there license after a medical check because they noted on the questionnaire that they have drank alcohol in the past year? I drank on New Years so shall I say on the questionnaire that I haven’t drank since last New Years instead?

Also two years ago I had choked on my food and been admitted into hospital A&E. I noticed on the questionnaire it also asks ‘have you ever had a seizure’. On my medical records for that day when I was admitted into hospital it says it was due to a seizure where as it is wrong. It says within the report ‘could have been seizure’. Will they check my medical report and see this or shall I answer this as no also?

I had cocaine and Xanax on New Years; is there a chance these show up in my urine or blood test?
is it best to lie on the questionnaire or shall I be honest

Any help will be appreciated highly, thanks.

So you had cocaine and Xanax on New year's, 7 days ago and you have a urine test when? It will only last 14 days in your system, longer in your hair but they don't do that test, it goes without saying you shouldn't be consuming such things so close to a medical (or at all) but we're all guilty. As for your actual medical I'd declare nothing to drink but I would report the seizure but tell them it's wrong. Your urine test will take a VERY long time to come back with such wait times, I'm currently on nearly 26 weeks (6 months) since I did it and no results as of yet, good luck I hope you get it back, keep us updated

 

[Shodre]

wow that’s insane. I read somewhere that they kept complaining on the DVLA website due to the urine test taking such pro-longed times and they sped up the process so maybe you should try that. Does everyone get urine tested or is it sometimes blood only?

 

[Shodre]

You say you come off your ban in a months time, have you reapplied for your licence and been told you need to book a medical at a specific nominated Doctors? Once you have been sent a letter saying you need to book your medical, you only have 12 weeks from that date to have the medical or they will decline you. Many DVLA approved medical centres have very limited places and are usually only willing to offer a medical on a particular day/date, you might not get to pick and choose when you have it.

If you lie on your forms, and say you haven't had a drink for over a year but the medical/blood test contradicts this, then you are opening all sorts of issues for yourself.

When asked about your medical history, again telling lies will not help. If/when DVLA write to your GP, the GP will confirm what your medical records say.

The DVLA blood test is only for CDT, which analyses your recent drinking patterns with the result. Drug screening is done by the urine test, but they only ask you to do a urine test if you have previous drugs convictions or if they have information on record/from your GP suggesting you have taken drugs in the last 6 years.

Having a one off drinking binge at New Year is unlikely to raise your CDT level, but if you mean you were on a proper bender for a number of days then your CDT could be raised, and depending on what your base line was, it can take a couple of months of complete abstinence for the levels to return to the normal range.

So to summarise, if you have reapplied and have been sent the letter telling you to call the nominated surgery to book your medical, then you need to sort it within the timescale or you will be declined and have to reapply all over again - starting everything back from day 1. If you decide to lie on the official forms, you open yourself up to further scrutiny and even possible prosecution when they prove you lied.

Depending on your medical/questionnaire/GP report, DVLA can decide that you are an alcohol/drug misuser and would require a further 6 months of either complete abstinence, or drinking within government guidelines - with proof (usually LFT tests from your GP on a regular basis). They could also decide you are dependent, then they would require a full 12 months complete abstinence, again with proof. You really need to decide if these are possible outcomes for you, as only you know your history...

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. No I haven’t been sent a letter to book a medical test nor have I re-applied for my license as I am still on a ban I didn’t think I would be able to yet. I’m fine with not picking a date as I will not be drinking anymore until summer hopefully.

As for contradicting myself this is why I wanted to make sure I would be in the clear before saying this as from reading online I have seen that alcohol usually comes out of the system within 3 days. I am not a heavy drinker & never have been. I did drink maybe twice a week upcoming to the New Years but not heavily nor was it a problem. Does this mean there may be a build up of my CDT levels?

My GP doesn’t have any records of drug use but I have been convicted with police for Cannabis & cocaine possession. Does this mean I will be urine tested and how would the doctor even find this out?

i think I will have a blood test with my GP in two weeks so I can have a clear head on maybe what to answer on the questionnaire.
My only worry is how to answer the questionnaire. I do not want to answer & admit I had a drink on New Years to celebrate if this will mean they will deny my application when I know my blood test will probably show no levels of alcohol as I will not be drinking anymore until summer. But if my blood does show alcohol I will be left in a pickle.

 

[BigTom]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. No I haven’t been sent a letter to book a medical test nor have I re-applied for my license as I am still on a ban I didn’t think I would be able to yet. I’m fine with not picking a date as I will not be drinking anymore until summer hopefully.

As for contradicting myself this is why I wanted to make sure I would be in the clear before saying this as from reading online I have seen that alcohol usually comes out of the system within 3 days. I am not a heavy drinker & never have been. I did drink maybe twice a week upcoming to the New Years but not heavily nor was it a problem. Does this mean there may be a build up of my CDT levels?

My GP doesn’t have any records of drug use but I have been convicted with police for Cannabis & cocaine possession. Does this mean I will be urine tested and how would the doctor even find this out?

i think I will have a blood test with my GP in two weeks so I can have a clear head on maybe what to answer on the questionnaire.
My only worry is how to answer the questionnaire. I do not want to answer & admit I had a drink on New Years to celebrate if this will mean they will deny my application when I know my blood test will probably show no levels of alcohol as I will not be drinking anymore until summer. But if my blood does show alcohol I will be left in a pickle.

You don't need to worry about your CDT levels for the blood test if you don't drink until the summer. As you haven't even applied for your licence to be reinstated yet, it is very unlikely that you will be invited for the medical much before April/May at the earliest, by which time your CDT would have returned to normal, even if you were drinking more than you should.

If you have been convicted of drugs offences before, the Police may have reported this to DVLA. Therefore, when they do eventually offer you a medical, they may well ask for the urine test as well as the blood test.

Your best bet is to be honest on the questionnaire, saying you had a drink at New Year isn't necessarily an issue, as long as they don't class you as a misuser or dependent. You are asked how often you drank more than 6 units in 1 sitting, saying once a year is not really going to raise their concerns as long as there is no evidence to suggest this is wrong.

 

[Shodre]

You don't need to worry about your CDT levels for the blood test if you don't drink until the summer. As you haven't even applied for your licence to be reinstated yet, it is very unlikely that you will be invited for the medical much before April/May at the earliest, by which time your CDT would have returned to normal, even if you were drinking more than you should.

If you have been convicted of drugs offences before, the Police may have reported this to DVLA. Therefore, when they do eventually offer you a medical, they may well ask for the urine test as well as the blood test.

Your best bet is to be honest on the questionnaire, saying you had a drink at New Year isn't necessarily an issue, as long as they don't class you as a misuser or dependent. You are asked how often you drank more than 6 units in 1 sitting, saying once a year is not really going to raise their concerns as long as there is no evidence to suggest this is wrong.

Really? That’s absurd. What a long waiting list. Should they even be allowed to make people wait this long when you have served your time & punishment for what has happened after near enough 2 years ago.

I am not allowed to drive until medical test has been done right?

 

[price1367]

You are not allowed to drive until you have done the medical, and DVLA have evaluated the results, plus consulted your GP if they feel that is appropriate and they have then decided they you can have your licence back…..
As has been discussed on here, this process takes a LOT of time!

 

[Recovered22]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. No I haven’t been sent a letter to book a medical test nor have I re-applied for my license as I am still on a ban I didn’t think I would be able to yet. I’m fine with not picking a date as I will not be drinking anymore until summer hopefully.

As for contradicting myself this is why I wanted to make sure I would be in the clear before saying this as from reading online I have seen that alcohol usually comes out of the system within 3 days. I am not a heavy drinker & never have been. I did drink maybe twice a week upcoming to the New Years but not heavily nor was it a problem. Does this mean there may be a build up of my CDT levels?

My GP doesn’t have any records of drug use but I have been convicted with police for Cannabis & cocaine possession. Does this mean I will be urine tested and how would the doctor even find this out?

i think I will have a blood test with my GP in two weeks so I can have a clear head on maybe what to answer on the questionnaire.
My only worry is how to answer the questionnaire. I do not want to answer & admit I had a drink on New Years to celebrate if this will mean they will deny my application when I know my blood test will probably show no levels of alcohol as I will not be drinking anymore until summer. But if my blood does show alcohol I will be left in a pickle.

You could have sent off your application 90 days before the date your ban ends. You're now 2 months behind in the process than you should have been, as others have pointed out it will likely be May before you get a medical with the current wait times so it will be long out of your system.