It is a general requirement that conditional licences for commercial vehicle drivers are issued by the driver licensing authority based on advice from an appropriate medical specialist (endocrinologist or consultant physician specialising in diabetes) and that these drivers are reviewed periodically by the specialist to determine their ongoing fitness to drive. For commercial drivers receiving insulin treatment, at least three months of blood glucose monitoring records should be reviewed in assessing fitness to drive.
@searley is this your area? I could well have the wrong person
Thank you for the response. This is actually very reassuring. Hopefully there might be a way for me to get back to driving professionally for a living.Even for cars the rule is if ‘below 5 do not START to drive’
You are perfectly legal to drive down to 4, below 4 you are legally classed as hypo
So do not start a journey when below 5 without eating.
And stop driving if below 4
So YES going as low as 4 is ok, however due to the high risk of my hazchem loads I choose to stay higher when driving
It’s also a requirement to carry fast acting carbs.. I carry dextrose
and slower acting carbs.. I carry a box of cereal bars
Thank you for the response. This is actually very reassuring. Hopefully there might be a way for me to get back to driving professionally for a living.
Slight correction here. You can use a phone but you can't touch it. People use phones for navigation all the time, which is perfectly legal.You cannot use your phone whilst driving even if you are checking your levels.
Slight correction here. You can use a phone but you can't touch it. People use phones for navigation all the time, which is perfectly legal.
I use google maps while driving, which keeps my screen open. I use a split screen so I can see my BG and my navigation without ever touching my phone.
Another correction here.. you can not use a handheld phone.. a phone in a cradle can be used… however this is a sort of moot subject as cgm is not acceptable for professional driving anyway
Companies(like mine) may go above the legal here and ban any touching of a phone, which is why my cgm readings are on my watch - again whilst good for a quick view you still legally need the actual blood tests too
That's why I said no touching a phone, no need to touch it if it's in a phone holder.Another correction here.. you can not use a handheld phone.. a phone in a cradle can be used… however this is a sort of moot subject as cgm is not acceptable for professional driving anyway
Companies(like mine) may go above the legal here and ban any touching of a phone, which is why my cgm readings are on my watch - again whilst good for a quick view you still legally need the actual blood tests too
That's why I said no touching a phone, no need to touch it if it's in a phone holder.
And while CGM readings may not be accepted as official readings for professional driving, I'm very happy if T1 lorry drivers sharing the road with my vulnerable little car keep an eye on their numbers in between fingerprick tests so they're aware of drops and rises way before they become problematic.
Your screenshot says it's illegal to hold and use any device that can send or receive data, not that it's illegal to use it. If this was the case, your CGM would be illegal even if you didn't look at it, especially if it's coupled with a pump. I suppose you are allowed using satnav, as long as you don't fiddle with the device while driving.
Really?You said you can’t touch it…. You can if it’s not hand held.. ie in a cradle
Really?
You are allowed to touch your phone while driving in the UK as long as you don't hold it in your hands?
My apologies for the confusion, I thought your laws were stricter than our Dutch ones!
Well you say awake hypos. I had a sleep hypos and GP informed the dvla of it upon renewal. I provided evidence from the ambulance report, GP was wrong and a nice letter from the DVLA basically called them out on it and pointed them to some learning material. Still took 3months to sort, but DVLA allowed me to drive.First thing todo is stick to the rules for bg testing — has to be blood tests not cgm
Min 2 tests a day even days not driving, A test prior to first journey then through the day you must always have had a test within the last 2 hours whilst driving
You must carry fast action carbs, and slower acting like cereal bars
YOU MUST NOT miss a single test in the 60 days leading upto your DVLA appointed consultant appointment (yearly) as the consultant will go through the meter and check
You MUST keep a record of lows (3.9 or below) including reason/ treatment how you felt.. if whilst driving notes on action taken like (pulled into lay-by)
Adhere to rules like don’t drive for 45mins after a hypo
All this is evidence that it is safe for you to drive
During your consultant appointment you will be asked about the above, you will also be asked about hypo awareness and you MUST claim to be hypo aware and be able to describe some of the symptoms you may feel
You MUST NOT have any severe hypos during awake hours(that require help of other), self treated hypos are allowed but should be recorded as described above
You will be asked about the rules ie.. don’t start to drive below 5 etc…
For me I would be very careful about taking blood tests to minimise low bg’s…. You have a cgm so don’t test on your (every day) meter if you know you’ll be hypo - I have a 2nd meter that I use and don’t ‘disclose’ for the purpose of confirming hypos
CGM’s are totally irrelevant in relation to vocational licenses so those proper blood tests are crucial
This is something where the goal posts tend to change at one point nocturnal 'severe nocturnal' hypos were acceptable now they are not... severe = requiring help of another to treatWell you say awake hypos. I had a sleep hypos and GP informed the dvla of it upon renewal. I provided evidence from the ambulance report, GP was wrong and a nice letter from the DVLA basically called them out on it and pointed them to some learning material. Still took 3months to sort, but DVLA allowed me to drive.
Moved to a hospital clinic so GP has nothing to do with my diabetes care now.
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