Reforming The Driver CPC-System

Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) training was introduced in 2007 in the EU for professional drivers of lorries, buses, and coaches. Professional drivers are required to complete a minimum amount of initial training and regular refresher training. This includes 35 hours of periodic training every 5 years to keep their Driver CPC.

Following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU and a previous review in response to acute driver shortages in 2021, earlier in 2023, the Department for Transport launched a consultation on how Driver CPC will be maintained going forward.

The Government has now published the results of this consultation and their proposals for reform.

These proposals would see the creation of two parallel systems:

• A new national driver CPC (N-DCPC) and
• An International Driver CPC (I-DCPC), effectively the current regime

Both systems would permit driving in the UK, but only the I-DCPC would permit driving to, from, and within the EU.

Changes introduced by the N-DCPC would include:

• Reducing the minimum length of a qualifying training course from the current 7 hours to 3.5 hours
• Removing the requirement to complete split courses over two consecutive days
• Removing the requirement that only 2 hours of e-learning are permitted per trainer-led course. However, the current maximum of 12 hours of e-learning will be permitted for every 35 hours of driver CPC
• Introducing an option to take a test as an alternative to completing periodic training, further consultation is expected on this

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