Code 122

Code 122 tells you that the entitlement beside it depends on successful completion of basic moped training. Read the category row and the restriction together. A category printed on a photocard is not necessarily permission to use it immediately when a condition is attached. GOV.UK expressly excludes trial e-scooters from this code, so the two sorts of vehicle must be considered separately.

Start at the back of the photocard. Find the relevant moped category in column 9, check its validity dates, then look across to column 12 for 122 and any other restriction. A car category elsewhere on the card does not erase a condition against a moped row. The front of the card proves who holds it; the back tells you what that holder may actually drive.

The code concerns training, not the machine's engine or speed. You still need the right entitlement, insurance and a roadworthy vehicle. Completing training does not turn a provisional moped category into an unrestricted motorcycle category.

A learner generally needs basic training before using a moped on the road. In Great Britain, GOV.UK calls the course compulsory basic training, or CBT. It is instruction and an assessment of safe riding, rather than a conventional test with a pass mark. A trainer issues a certificate once the course is completed to the required standard. Merely booking a place or attending part of a session does not satisfy a condition that says training must be completed.

Northern Ireland has its own CBT scheme and its own licensing administration. The Driver and Vehicle Agency, rather than DVLA, is the right place to check a Northern Ireland licence record. NI guidance distinguishes what learners may ride alone after training from larger motorcycle categories that require instructor supervision. This is why a GB rule found on a general search result should never be assumed to settle an NI entitlement.

A full moped or motorcycle entitlement can arise through a qualifying test or another published exception. GOV.UK also lists exceptions to repeating CBT for some existing licence holders. Check the precise exception before relying on it: the date you passed a car test, the category of bike and where your licence was issued all matter. A rider hiring a machine should show the operator the actual entitlement rather than describe it as a car licence with a moped included.

In Great Britain, book with an approved motorcycle training body. The GOV.UK course description sets out five parts: an introduction and eyesight check, on-site training, on-site riding, on-road training and on-road riding. The on-road part lasts at least two hours. The instructor can require more practice before issuing the DL196 certificate. That extra time is a training decision, not a failed driving test.

Take your driving licence and ask the school what equipment it supplies. At the end, keep the DL196 with your important motoring papers. The certificate is the evidence of completion; a booking receipt or a message saying you attended is not the same thing. Before the first independent journey, read your category row again and make sure you meet any other conditions shown there.

In Northern Ireland, find a DVA-approved provider and follow nidirect's CBT instructions. NI's on-road element has a different minimum duration from the GB course. The two administrations publish different routes and exceptions, so tell the school where your licence was issued when you book. If the trainer says you need another session, arrange that before riding independently rather than treating partial attendance as enough.

For GB learners using CBT to practise for a full moped or motorcycle test, GOV.UK says the certificate lasts two years. If that time passes without the full test, take CBT again or stop riding under the learner route. A rider cannot cure an expired certificate by pointing to an old code printed on a still valid photocard. The code states the condition; the certificate and underlying entitlement show whether it has been met now.

If a GB certificate is lost, contact the school that issued it. GOV.UK says the replacement can cost no more than £20. If the school has closed or does not respond, the DVSA replacement guidance explains what to do next. GOV.UK also says that if you completed the course more than 2 years ago, you need to take another CBT course rather than get a replacement certificate.

The GB car-test route needs careful reading. A person who passes the car test on or after 1 February 2001 can gain full moped entitlement by completing CBT after the test, or by completing CBT first and passing the car test within two years. GOV.UK says that entitlement then lasts as long as the car licence. The Northern Ireland car-test cut-off is different: nidirect states 21 February 2011. Use the guidance for the place where your licence was issued before assuming a historic exemption.

No. DVLA's published wording explicitly carves trial e-scooters out of code 122. A rental e-scooter in an authorised trial is treated separately from a privately owned moped. GOV.UK says a rider needs a valid full or provisional driving licence with category Q; categories AM, A and B include Q entitlement. It also says provisional licence holders do not need to display L plates for the trial vehicle.

Use the trial operator's vehicle and check its terms before setting off. The operator supplies third-party insurance under the published trial guidance. Privately owned e-scooters are a different matter: the trial permission does not make them legal to ride on public roads or other public places. Completing moped CBT does not change that distinction. Nor does the exemption from code 122 grant permission to use a rental machine outside a trial area.

A teenager who sees 122 beside a moped category might think the same course is needed to rent a trial scooter. It is not. The licence category, operator rules and insurance still need checking. A rental account is not proof of entitlement.

For a GB licence, use GOV.UK's View or share your driving licence information service. It shows the vehicles you can drive and any recorded penalty points. Compare the online categories with the back of the photocard, especially if the card is old or has been replaced. The service can also generate a check code for a third party; GOV.UK says that code lasts 21 days. A hire operator may ask for this rather than relying on a photograph of the card.

Northern Ireland licence holders use DVA's separate service and guidance, not the DVLA GB viewing service. The NI photocard explanation identifies restriction codes in column 12 and describes the paper counterpart that accompanies the card. If a training condition or category is unclear, contact the issuing licensing agency with the licence in front of you. Ask what the specific row permits, rather than asking whether code 122 is generally safe to ignore.

There is no published promise that taking CBT automatically removes 122 from an existing photocard. A completed course is the evidence that the stated condition has been fulfilled. If you think the code or category is wrong, query the record with DVLA or DVA as appropriate. Do not alter a licence, assume a database update, or order a replacement merely to hide a valid condition.

The practical answer is to stop and complete the training before riding alone. GOV.UK says riding without a valid CBT certificate can bring a fine of up to £1,000 and up to six penalty points. Those are published GB consequences of missing CBT, rather than a separate penalty invented for the printed number 122. Other licence or insurance offences may also arise, but the facts of the particular journey and policy would matter.

Do not assume insurance automatically pays a claim when the rider has ignored a licence condition. Before borrowing or hiring a moped, tell the insurer or hire firm exactly what the licence displays and whether training is complete. If you are stopped and have lost the certificate, contact the training school for a replacement and give the police accurate details. Claiming that a booked course was completed will not help.

A new learner in Cardiff sees a moped category with code 122. They book GB CBT, finish every element and receive a DL196. They can then check their provisional category, display L or D plates, both allowed in Wales, arrange insurance and ride within the learner rules. If they are still practising when the certificate's two-year period ends, they must renew the training or stop. Passing a car test later may change the route to full moped entitlement, but only under GOV.UK's published conditions.

Another rider holds a Northern Ireland car licence and remembers that GB friends with old car tests do not need CBT for a small moped. That memory is not enough. NI publishes a different car-test date for its exemption. They check their DVA record and nidirect's rule before accepting the keys from a relative. If the exemption does not apply, they complete NI training and keep the certificate. Neither rider can use the other administration's date as an answer for their own licence.