Just a cautionary tale regarding my last experience with the DVLA.
Based on this experience, I would caution anyone against applying too early for a Medical Driving Licence renewal- frankly it is much better to be patient and apply nearer the expiry date of your existing licence!
Should there be a delay in processing the licence application for any reason ( which happened to me , with delays and missing or incomplete forms to/from both my Consultant and GP, but to be fair, they probably had a bit more to attend to with Covid, than in a normal year ), resulting in your existing licence expiry date passing by, and with no valid licence yet issued, you can of course resort to driving under Section 88 of the RTA , as long as your Doctor agrees, but, and this is very very important -
“be aware, ‘the section 88 cover is valid from the date your application is received, not the date of your original licence renewal” hence me saying earlier, ‘ don’t apply early, & it is better to be patient!
In my case, having applied in January 2020 for an April 2020 licence expiry,-thinking that this would take a bit of pressure off’ the DVLA , , I wrongly thought that because my licence was still valid, until the April, that the section 88 1 year cover , would commence on the day my licence expired but no, this is why we all need to be aware - it commenced from the date that the application was received ie 28 January 2020, and it then duly expired on the 27th.January 2021.
So, because of Covid ( and it could be for any other reason in the future of course) , there was a shortage of staff and consequential delays, and I still did not have my licence, but neither did I have protection under section 88 RTA, as my application was about 13 months back!
The result was, that I could not drive - not until I was in receipt of my new Driving Licence, Not even in an emergency as I would be breaking the law, which would invalidate my Insurance cover !
Phew
Mike