So back in 1990 when I was 21 I decided to go for my HGV class 1 , having had many years driving 7.5T’s and loving the job and wanting to be an European Lorry driver I went for it and passed first time !
Fast forward 7 years on to 1997 and a diagnosis of diabetes Type 1 , resulting instantly having the class1 taken away from me!
Fast forward again to mid March 2025 and having spent time driving 3.5T I decided to re apply to have my Class 1 reinstated as the law changed a few years back .
Having 6 weeks of blood tests on a monitor I started the process of getting the daddy licence back having had the initial D4 medical which I had to pay for and filling in the D2 and VDIAB1 forms I’d made the start, about 3 weeks down the line I received notification from the DVLA I was to attend a medical organised by them to see their nominated diabetic consultant, nervous but confident I had well controlled sugars I attended, questions about the knowledge of diabetes , hypos and how to handle the rules on driving -to know about testing every 2 hours whilst driving with diabetes and to view in depth my last 6 weeks of sugar readings at the end he said along the lines of … congratulations.
From that point it was a waiting game, I was excited when I received another DVLA letter but only to request information from my doctor ( nothing to do with diabetes) - this took about 2 weeks !
Constantly checking the status of my driving licence online last Thursday 12th June it wasn’t available to view so I rang them for an update - to my excitement and joy I’d been issued my HGV 1 back , ok its for 12 months when I then have to go through paperwork and diabetic medical again (I think) .
It’s taken roughly 3 months from applying to having the licence reinstated so it’s possible for T1 diabetics to hold the licence , for me I’ve already applied for my driving card and looking into the CPC you have to have, will I ever drive class 1 again I don’t know , 14/18T Ridges yes - the whole reason for doing it was to prove a point to myself that having a serious medical condition does not stop you holding certain licences.
Thanks for reading 