Came out the forces never having taken a Class 1 test but got given the licence after WW2 like my dad?..
He joined the Warwicks, transferred to the Staffs, didnt like the losses there so volunteered to drive a radio truck a few miles behind the lines through Libya, Egypt, Italy and France for GHQ
Didn’t alot of drivers gain there hgv licences through ‘grandfather rights’ in the late 60’s , when they brought the HGV licencing system in ?
That’s me, only ever taken one driving test in my whole life, 1957, small (very) van, passed first time. It was a cold February morning, bit’s of black ice here and there, went, passed, and the fella who took me to the test station said, “OK, off you go by yourself to tell your girlfriend”. Slipped on some black ice and ran it into a wall. FIRST DAY, within 2 hours of having passed the test. 
And the most annoying thing is that now, after all these years married, the old bat never let’s me forget it. She passed first time round about that time but, as she says, “I didn’t run it in to a wall”. 
Dad used to take me with him in school holidays in his 8 legger Guy coal tipper to Hemel Hempstead and coke works, no seat belts…noise…oil…diesel…
loved it
My father has never passed a driving test in his life. He was 17 years old as the War was coming to an end and had been working on a farm since he was 14. He tells me that he had to fill in a form stating which classes of vehicle he was accustomed to driving (all of them except tracked vehicles in his case) and his employer had to confirm this. There was some threat of dire consequences for anyone found to have made a false declaration, apparently.
So he ended up with a licence to drive pretty much anything. I think that by the time the licensing system changed he was no longer working on the farm so let his lorry entitlements lapse.
I have hazy memories of riding with him in the cab of an 8-wheeler of some sort back in the early 60s. I know it was VERY VERY NOISY, and I think he mentioned it having a 2-stroke diesel engine.
My old chap, too, Roymondo. I was granted a Class One HGV licence myself having been driving the things since I was 21.
I blagged a Class 2 when the HGV (grandfather rights) came out as I argued that my Austin FG parcel van had 6 wheels (twin rears) and bamboozled my boss into signing the forms, however I had to take a test to get Class 1 in 1977.
my uncle served 6 years in the army , france , n. africa and italy and when he was demobbed in early 1947 my dad arranged for him to take his lorry driving job , and he went on the buses . uncle stayed at that job until he retired . on the subject of hgv entitlement , i had been on arctics , but found a cushy class 2 job just when the qualifying period was set . i went to se my old boss and he signed the class one forms . nobody was checking up anyway to my knowledge
Rigsby, are you the Rigsby who I worked for with Frank Allison?
no mate , i come from derbyshire , rigs by was always my cb handle so i use it on here
I doubt there will be many, if any, on this site that got their license during the war years, they would be at least 85 yrs old or more today. My Father like many others did it that way, he was a Driver/Mechanic in the DLI, and went straight into driving when he demobbed in 52, however when the Class One licence entitlement came in he was driving a four wheeler after years of artic work and his then new gaffer wouldn’t sign the forms for him to qualify for Grandfather rights. He ended up going back to his previous job and found he had to do the test, he probably never thought about getting this employer to sign his form earlier, never mind it all worked out but he was a bit nervous about the test I recall.
My Grandfather also never took a driving test and he was still bombing about in his little Hillman Imp at 80 plus yrs old. He drove a Steam Engine in the Washington Chemical Works, some on here know it better as Cape Insulation or Turner and Newells. Before he worked there he told me he drove a small lorry in the early 20’s and used to jack the back wheel up, put it in gear and spin the wheel to start the engine. On trips from Durham to Newcastle he often got out to stretch his legs and walked along side the motor as it chugged along probably doing about 5 mph! Time must never have been a thought in those days, how that’s changed over the years!
I passed my test in the army in 1962 on a 12 tonne armoured car,(Saladin),that provided a licence that covered everything in those days from a car to a maximum weight HGV.
I also took a test in a Chieftain tank which gives me a group h,(Track laying vehicle).
When I left the services in 1968 I had jobs either tramping or working in an HGV workshop,so by the time the new licences came out I was able to claim grandfather rights.
When my new licence arrived I had to send it back as they’d ommitted to include group h which is still relevent today,(Although I don’t use it very often!)
Mum never forgave dad for not taking a grant when demobbed and buying his own truck and back then work was plenty (inc the Hell Drivers, etc)
Roymondo:
My father has never passed a driving test in his life. He was 17 years old as the War was coming to an end and had been working on a farm since he was 14. He tells me that he had to fill in a form stating which classes of vehicle he was accustomed to driving (all of them except tracked vehicles in his case) and his employer had to confirm this. There was some threat of dire consequences for anyone found to have made a false declaration, apparently.
So he ended up with a licence to drive pretty much anything. I think that by the time the licensing system changed he was no longer working on the farm so let his lorry entitlements lapse.
.
similar situation with my grandfather , he drove horses to plough and went into the building trade before tractors arrived (where he was working anyway). he never actually drove anything other than a pushbike though .