HGV license

[Lucyr]

My policy, which I admit I do not always manage to stick to, is that unless something is true, helpful and kindly meant, I try not to say it.

What I said was true (matches dvla requirements), was helpful (as it hopefully stops the person with the question from stopping fingerpricking) and kindly meant (I want the person concerned to get their HGV licence asap)

This is exactly why my very first response was that they shouldn’t ask here. People pitch in with incorrect information that can cost someone their job.

 

[Alan44]

Good morning people.

I think we all know from previous and similar threads that the DLVA rules are not in many ways 100% clear and can be interpreted in different ways, therefore a healthy discussion is always welcome.

Approaching the DVLA directly may be the only way to get a definitive answer

Can we all remember to play nicely and be kind to each other and maybe just reread your post before pressing the "post reply" button.

Thank you

Alan

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Rocktheboat

I’ve moved your post to the Driving and DVLA section of the forum.

This earlier thread confirms the need to check BG at least 2x a day with a fingerstick, even on days when not driving.

Thread 'Group 2 Drivers need to regularly check with BG meter even if using Flash / CGM'

Mar 22, 2021

Just a reminder of the current legal / DVLA requirements for Group 2 Drivers. There is a hope that eventually Flash monitoring data alone may be accepted, but until then the following rules apply:

Diabetes and your driving licence | DVLA laws | Diabetes UK

You must check your blood sugars at least twice a day including days when you’re not driving. Group 2 drivers have to do this twice a day using finger prick testing and record on a blood glucose meter, even if you are using Flash Glucose Monitoring.

You must also check your blood sugars no more than two hours before you...

• everydayupsanddowns
• Replies: 13
• Forum: Driving/DVLA

As @Lucyr has pointed out, checking BG with Flash/Libre is not sufficient for a Group 2 license. Fingerstick checks have to be done as well.

 

[rebrascora]

I think what would be helpful is understanding what makes those 2 finger pricks helpful to the DVLA in order to know when might be best to take them. ie what do they actually achieve or show other than that you can follow instructions and use a BG meter. We all know that BG levels can vary dramatically over the day so what do those 2 tests show them?
I am guessing that if you felt hypo before doing those 2 non driving DVLA tests you probably would not use the meter you use for recording your DVLA results to check your levels, so that it doesn't record a hypo. In fact if you did those 2 tests after meals they would likely always show higher readings.
I also wonder if there is any restriction on high BG levels because we all know that high BG can make you sluggish and fatigued and hard to concentrate and potentially more at risk of a heart attack if levels are high long term, so just curious as to what the logic is in doing those 2 tests.

I can understand testing before driving and perhaps every 2 hours although levels can easily drop in 2 hours but I do see more logic in incorporating CGM into the equation but appreciate that it isn't currently part of the DVLA guidelines.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

I think what would be helpful is understanding what makes those 2 finger pricks helpful to the DVLA in order to know when might be best to take them. ie what do they actually achieve or show other than that you can follow instructions and use a BG meter. We all know that BG levels can vary dramatically over the day so what do those 2 tests show them?

Yes it does seem to be a rule put in place by a committee without much understanding of the day-to-day intricacies of diabetes management, and how BG monitoring is used by people with diabetes.

 

[helli]

I think what would be helpful is understanding what makes those 2 finger pricks helpful to the DVLA in order to know when might be best to take them. ie what do they actually achieve or show other than that you can follow instructions and use a BG meter. We all know that BG levels can vary dramatically over the day so what do those 2 tests show them?

The two finger prick tests mentioned by the OP are the tests made for 6 week before the application showing "showing you are monitoring your blood glucose (sugar) levels to the required standard" (as this document describes).

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

The two finger prick tests mentioned by the OP are the tests made for 6 week before the application showing "showing you are monitoring your blood glucose (sugar) levels to the required standard" (as this document describes).

And as I understand it the requirement for 2x fingerstick checks on non-driving days (alongside any Flash / CGM) plus checking around driving itself (before and every 2hrs during), continues when the Group 2 license is issued.

 

[Proud to be erratic]

My husband is an HGV driver type 2 and now on insulin. He has started his six week finger prick testing twice daily for the DVLA and is doing first thing in the morning and before bed, is this sufficient?

@Rocktheboat,
This is 2nd hand info, but I had coffee with a member who has recently gone through the DVLA "challenge" with his HGV licence renewal. After his diagnosis in Apr/May 2024 as a T3c and insulin dependent, he initially chose to let his licence lapse. But in Apr/May, after 12 months, he set out to get his licence restored.

Paul, @Busdriver60, restarted his finger prick testing and simultaneously reached out to DVLA for guidance. They wrote to him telling him they had asked for a Consultant's opinion on his fitness to drive. That quite quickly led to an appointment with a named Consultant at the same Hospital where he had been receiving his pancreatitis care and where he was getting his diabetic support from. Paul had maintained a regular dialogue with the DSN from that Hospital, over the intervening 12 months. He already had been provided with a Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) Libre 2 and his Libre data was being shared with the Hospital through the web-based portal of LibreView. Reasonably quickly afterwards he had his Consult by phone and that led to the renewal of his licence.

So, I would conclude from Paul's experience that your husband could expect DVLA to seek professional medical confirmation of your husband's fitness to continue driving. Also, if your husband does already have a CGM such as Libre 2 or Dexcom One+, he should make sure his data is being shared by his Hospital (for Libre it is through LibreView and for Dexcom it is a portal called Clarity). If your husband does not yet have CGM then this would seem to be something he should pursue with the Hospital that started him on insulin. Not only for a means of making his review easier to get successfully completed, but also because it makes sense that an HGV driver is so much better assisted by having technology that can help him avoid going hypo while driving.

There is a NICE Guidance Note, NG28, that spells out the circumstances for T2 and CGM. NG28 will provide the written Guidance for T2 eligibility. If your husband doesn't obviously become eligible for CGM from NG28, then judgement can be used by a Consultant or GP to prescribe this; and it seems to me that an insulin dependent T2 could be the beneficiary of such judgement! There is plenty of media comment and politician's responses acknowledging that HGV2 drivers are a scarce national resource.