Form D46P - Renewing License at 70

[lyndon]

My lipreading class has a number of people approaching the age of 70 who have various levels of hearing loss. I know that deafness is not a notifiable condition for holders of car and motorcycle licenses. However, some of the class believed that the form used to renew your driving license at age 70 (Form D46P) actually has a question about deafness or hearing loss in the medical section. Does anyone know if this is true, and if so, what use is made of the information, in view of the fact that it is not a notifiable condition?

[lyndon]

OK, problem resolved. It looks as though the situation is as follows:

According to the DVLA Medical Rules for Drivers, if you hold a car or motorcycle driving licence you will not need to tell DVLA about deafness or hearing loss.
If you hold a bus, coach or lorry driving licence, you will need to tell DVLA about your condition, if you are profoundly deaf. They will want to satisfy themselves that a driver then has a proven ability to communicate in the event of an emergency by speech or by using a device e.g. a MINICOM. If unable to do so the licence is likely to be refused or revoked.
Source: At a glance Guide to the current Medical Standards of Fitness to Drive, issued by Drivers Medical Group, DVLA, Swansea.
I have contacted the DVLA Helpline, and they confirmed that there is no question related to hearing loss or deafness on form D46 or D46P – renewal of licence at 70. So the same rules apply after 70.

If you know otherwise, please let me know.