An elderly lady was tricked into paying a small fortune to get a new driving licence from a fake DVLA website.
Due to the enormous backlog at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), some websites are charging more than £100 with the promise to renew a driving licence.
These websites often look similar to the DVLA website and have appeared at the top of Google, which encourages drivers to click on them.
These sites charge you to carry out services that the DVLA offer for free or they’ll charge a much larger amount than DVLA do. For instance, the DVLA will charge you £14 to renew a driving licence, whereas these websites will charge up to £100.
Websites will charge this immense fee as you need to have a valid driving licence or a provisional driving licence to take driving lessons. Many learners looking for driving lessons in London, driving lessons in Kettering or driving lessons in Hemel Hempstead have been unable to begin their driving lessons due to the long waiting time for a provisional licence.
While these websites are legal, it is best to stay away from any website offering DVLA services other than the official DVLA website.
79-year-old Adeline Johnson paid £80 to Licence Services when she was after a new driving licence.
Johnson went onto a website that she believed was the government website but was, in fact, a scam website. She said, “Suddenly up popped a message from my bank asking me to authorise a payment.”
After the payment was made, Johnson realised what had happened and she emailed the company to complain.
In the email, she said, “You have no right to take my money,” she said. “If you don’t return it, I am reporting you to Trading Standards. I am a pensioner and cannot afford to lose the money.”
Licence Services replied stating, “Our services allow your application to be thoroughly checked for any mistakes or omissions before being processed by DVLA. Please note that under no circumstances is our company affiliated with the government or working on its behalf. Therefore, we charge a service fee of £80 for one full year.”
Fortunately for Adeline, she was able to receive a full refund, though others are not as lucky.
How to spot a fake website
The first indication is to see if the web address has gov.uk in it; it is not the official DVLA website if it does not have gov.uk. You should also think that it is a red flag if you are being asked to pay for a service that was previously free – this could be if you were paying for a log book when it was previously free,
Last year, fewer licences were issued because motorists were given an 11-month extension due to Covid.
You can read more about this story on the Mirror here.
