Large Goods Vehicle Drivers: Qualifications
(asked on 22nd September 2021) - View Source
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many HGV Driver Certificate of Professional Competence certificates were issued in each of the last three years.
Drivers who successfully pass the initial Certificate of Professional Competence qualification are issued with a Driver Qualification Card (DQC). Drivers must renew their DQC every five years by undergoing 35 hours of periodic training.
The table below shows the total number of DQCs issued and renewed since 2018 for all vocational drivers. It is not possible to determine if the card relates to lorry or bus entitlement.
Year | Cards issued |
2018 | 152,091 |
2019 | 516,583 |
2020 | 118,727 |
2021 (to date) | 79,317 |
Certificates of Professional Competence for lorry drivers were introduced in 2009. The higher number of cards issued in 2019 reflects the number of lorry drivers who were renewing their card for a second time.