Nothing is more frustrating than losing something that is vital to your job. If you are an HGV learner driver, a Provisional Licence is the most essential asset one can acquire. But, what should a driver do if that shiny green card got lost unexpectedly?

Before embarking on fear, take a few breaths and think if the Provisional Licence is actually lost. Wrap your brain about its recent whereabouts, Turn the room upside down, interrogate every possibility, and act upon finding your vital commodity.

If you still fail to find it, it’s probably time to make it official that you lost your provisional licence. Now, there’s no need to panic; you just have to fill out forms and follow the essential guide.

Also read: 8 Rules to Read Before Applying for a Driving Licence Photo Card.

Understanding the situation

Firstly, we need to figure out what type of ‘lost’ we are talking about. Does the provisional licence seem to be in a room but can’t find it? Or you lost it on your yesterday night out. In the latter case, your provisional licence might have been stolen.

In such scenarios, you must contact your local authorities and inform them about your situation prior to anything. Identity theft is not a joke as it can quickly turn the tables from a simple case of a lost provisional licence to some worst possible nightmare. Therefore, Informing the authorities is a priority.

Once you ensure the above situation and officially decide that your licence is lost, you need to visit the official UK government website and apply for a replacement licence.

Apply for a new licence

Note: The process of applying for a new provisional licence is not the same in Northern Ireland. Thus, we suggest you consult NIdirect for more information.

If you haven’t lost your licence or in case you lose it in the future, don’t forget to take a picture of your provisional licence. If lost, at least you have a copy of the licence.

Suppose you haven’t done this, no worries. We are here to cover you as there’s already a process in line. To apply for your licence replacement, the Driver and Vehicle Licencing Agency (DVLA) offers three consecutive options: Online, by phone, and via post.

How long does it take for my licence to arrive?

When applied online, your licence is most likely to arrive in about a week. DVLA’s contact service is available for business if you want to enquire during the process.

Through an Online Portal

Applying online is the fastest and the most efficient way to substitute your lost provisional licence. Go to the DVLA website, and you can fill out the replacement form in no time.

Tip: You can follow the same process even if your licence is destroyed or damaged.

Considering that you will be quoting a piece of vital information while filling the replacement form, such as your Government Gateway ID, so we expect you already have one while applying for the provisional licence.

If you forgot your ID or password, there should be a reset password option to continue. Once you are logged in, you need:

• Your driving licence number, national insurance number, passport number and all addresses of your correspondence for the last three years.
• To pay a reasonable sum of a total of £20. (DVLA accepts credit and debit cards, including MasterCard, Electron, Visa, Delta, and Maestro)

By Phone

If you prefer talking to an actual person to enquire about your provisional licence, or nonetheless want to apply for a licence via phone, you can call DVLA on 0300 790 6801.

Caution required. Although you can request a replacement licence over the phone, you are not authorised to apply for a damaged licence or one that is about to expire in 56 days (90 days if due to medical reasons).

Via Post

At last, if you don’t mind a bit of a delay for your provisional licence replacement and want to go the old way, you can visit your local post office and hopefully find a D1 ‘Application for driving licence’ form.

A particular form ordering service is also available through DVLA in case your local post office isn’t stocked enough.

We do not suggest this option as it delays your replacement licence for around three weeks.

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