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[Sir Tigger KC]

That's fine if your company pays for the training, but for people like me who keep their HGV licence for a rainy day it's a PITA!! 

I regard my HGV licence as my safety net as I know that if all else fails I'll be able to find work lorry driving, however soon if I don't get the CPC my licence will be worthless!      It's just more bureaucratic EU shite!!!! 

Rant over....     

[Entwood]

That's fine if your company pays for the training, but for people like me who keep their HGV licence for a rainy day it's a PITA!! 

I regard my HGV licence as my safety net as I know that if all else fails I'll be able to find work lorry driving, however soon if I don't get the CPC my licence will be worthless!      It's just more bureaucratic EU shite!!!! 

Rant over....     

My LGV / PCV licences were also my "rainy day" safety net .. but have dropped them both now .. worked out the cost of CPC + medical + the other bits - forklifts, site safety etc etc - all originally paid for as military resettlement - and then factor in the chances of someone actually employing a 62 year old with limited experience - and all this being just a "maybe" - and it didn't seem to be worthwhile ... shame really as I had enjoyed the bits I had done, especially the coach work ..

[Vamps]

Here's what the net says.

Under a new European Union Directive, professional bus, coach and lorry drivers need to hold a Driver CPC in addition to a vocational driving licence. Any drivers of lorries over 3.5 tonnes and minibuses with 9 seats or more must obtain a Driver CPC.

New drivers obtain their Driver CPC by passing a series of initial qualification tests - theory and practical. This must then be followed by 35 hours of periodic training every five years if they want to keep their Driver CPC after that period.

Bus and coach drivers who hold a relevant vocational licence gained before 10 September 2008, and lorry drivers who obtained their licence before 10 September 2009, do not need to take the initial qualification. This is because they are deemed to hold 'acquired rights'. However, they will have to complete periodic training to keep their Driver CPC.

Driver CPC is valid for five years. New drivers who have qualified via the initial qualification route will receive a Driver Qualification Card (DQC), which they can show as proof that they hold Driver CPC. Existing drivers will receive their DQC when they have completed their 35 hours of periodic training. Their DQC will be valid till 9 September 2018 for PCV drivers and 9 September 2019 for LGV drivers. Holders of both licences will be covered by one DQC and only need to take 35 hours of periodic training in five years once. Also holders of both licences will have their DQC valid for all groups (HGV & PSV) till 9 September 2019

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driver_CPC

Thanks for the info and link, better find me a training place, passed my tests in 1979 and 1980.....

[Sir Tigger KC]

I wonder if you get taught how to do this on the CPC...     

http://video.uk.msn.com/watch/video/impressive-way-to-unload-a-truck/1j4kec0tn

[hoofing it]

You can also top up your cpc by taking a 7.5 hour coarse every year once you complete the inital 35 hrs and you can ask for a grant from the ILA (independant learning authority max £200) which is enough to pay for the coarse thus keeping you above the 35 hrs and the goverment pay it
There is a website run by DSA that allow drivers to keep track on cpc hours I'll try and find it and post link here.
Just one thing to bear in mind that after the deadline you won't be able to drive a lgv/psv without a cpc.

[brian36]

i done mine a couple months back and valid till sept 2019 ,same done adr 21 hours, customer services 7 hours and tacho hours and regs 7 hours.
not cheap when doing yourself but ila £200 helped,
the link to check you traininf status is:
https://www.gov.uk/check-your-driver-cpc-periodic-training-hours

[Entwood]

You can also top up your cpc by taking a 7.5 hour coarse every year once you complete the inital 35 hrs and you can ask for a grant from the ILA (independant learning authority max £200) which is enough to pay for the coarse thus keeping you above the 35 hrs and the goverment pay it
There is a website run by DSA that allow drivers to keep track on cpc hours I'll try and find it and post link here.
Just one thing to bear in mind that after the deadline you won't be able to drive a lgv/psv for reward without a cpc.

Fixed that for you .. Its a very minor difference, but you DON'T need CPC if you are not a paid (profesional) driver. This allows folks with their own horseboxes, fire-engines etc etc to drive quite legally.

[Vamps]

You can also top up your cpc by taking a 7.5 hour coarse every year once you complete the inital 35 hrs and you can ask for a grant from the ILA (independant learning authority max £200) which is enough to pay for the coarse thus keeping you above the 35 hrs and the goverment pay it
There is a website run by DSA that allow drivers to keep track on cpc hours I'll try and find it and post link here.
Just one thing to bear in mind that after the deadline you won't be able to drive a lgv/psv for reward without a cpc.

Fixed that for you .. Its a very minor difference, but you DON'T need CPC if you are not a paid (profesional) driver. This allows folks with their own horseboxes, fire-engines etc etc to drive quite legally.

Not if you compete in competitions that give prize money, people travel the country doing this, many as a business / profession - so I was informed from a reliable source.....

[Sir Tigger KC]

I wonder if the many Eastern European truck drivers (who did their test in a tractor and trailer) plying our roads are doing CPC's? 

[sassanach]

i have it on good authority(i have a friend who works for vosa)that its quite common for foreign lorry drivers to have no licence at all, im sure that the lack off a cpc will not pose a problem for them

[ted_one]

I did'nt want to go there but seeing that you have,it  would be rude not to chip in.When I was with Nat Ex we had monthly recruitment days and with a couple of other instructors it was our job to do the driving asessments prior to interview,from 2001 we had a flood of eastern European bus drivers looking for jobs and I can say now that in all honesty the standard of driving was poor and in the case of two Romanians I assessed they were marked down as dangerous.The only eastern European driver I put through was a Russian guy who was fired within a year for the sexual harrassment of a female passenger and revenue fraud.I always tried to cut all applicants a bit of slack when checking their standard of driving and of course I failed British,Asian and even a Frenchman who piled our test bus into a brand new double decker in a layby whilst on his assessment, so it was nothing personal..just trying to look into the future and make sure that the travelling public were kept safe.
It sounds like I'm grinding a bit of an axe here...maybe I am but I can only draw on my own recent personal experiences and I and the other instructors were always wary of all applicants regardless of their country of origin, but the standard of driving from eastern Europe was flagged up for scrutiny because of the accidents within the group involving the newly recruited Polish bus drivers who were directly 'head hunted' by Travel West Midlands/Nat Express who went over to Poland and brought them back,providing them with accomodation etc as incentives to work here.I know for a fact that the accident rate climbed overnight with one incident of a driver hitting the same bridge twice in two weeks,I know bus/coach driving is not every ones idea of a glittering career,probably more of way of earning a crust but imho all the bus and transport companies are guilty of damaging the image of these industries by employing in many cases cheap labour from other countries ..Rant over..sorry!

[tigers_gonads]

i have it on good authority(i have a friend who works for vosa)that its quite common for foreign lorry drivers to have no licence at all, im sure that the lack off a cpc will not pose a problem for them

If that's the case, why the f**k are customs and excise not checking these arseholes documents when they drive off the ferry ?
They are quick enough to pull you up if you have a bottle of beer or box of fags too many 

[ted_one]

Rules for you and me..then there's rules for the ''others''

[tigers_gonads]

Rules for you and me..then there's rules for the ''others''

Best I not comment on that or i'll get abused by the forum police and band 

[sassanach]

because customs and excise are looking for contraband not driving licences.its also apparent that british firms employ "foreign"drivers with dodgy licences also.