When May You Lend Your Driver’s License?

In order to drive a car or any other vehicle in Philippines, you must have a valid driver’s license. Sometimes your friend wants to drive a car but he does not have a license, so he asks for your license. Before taking any step further, you must learn “when may you lend your driver’s license?” and also think about its consequences.

Helping a friend is always a great idea but you must not get involved in something illegal. So, it is always good to check the legality of your action before you lend your driver’s license to your friend, spouse, sibling or any other person.

Traffic Law and Lending Driver’s License

The Philippine Traffic Law clearly expresses that lending your driver’s license to other person is unlawful i.e. illegal. So, be careful and never lend your driver’s license to any person because you will violate the law rules by doing it.

When your friend/sibling asks for your driver’s license, you should share the traffic law rules to them so that they can understand why you are denying it. If you don’t know what Philippine Traffic Law says about lending driver’s license then you will learn it here.

As per Section 24 of the Republic Act No. 4136 (RA 4136), “It shall be unlawful for any duly licensed driver to transfer, lend or otherwise allow any person to use his license for the purpose of enabling such person to operate a motor vehicle.”

Possible Risks of Lending Driver’s License

You already know that it is against the law but that is not the only issue, there are some serious risks and legal consequences if you lend your driver’s license to other person. Here I am sharing the possible risks of lending your driver’s license to someone.

Misrepresentation or Fraud Identity:

If you lend your driver’s license to other person, that person is misrepresenting you while driving a vehicle. It is a clear fraud of identity as per the traffic law in the Philippines. Because the driver’s license is yours and it is used by the other person.

Identity Theft and Leak Personal Info:

Your driver’s license contains your name, birth date, address, photo, height, weight, blood type and other sensitive information. There are chances of identity theft by stealing your information and using it for making a fake driver’s license and other fraudulent activities.

Traffic Fines and Demerit Points:

After you lend your driver’s license to other person, if that person violates one or more traffic rules, the traffic fines will be added to your driver’s license. Not only that, you will get demerit points for each violation as per rules.

If the traffic police personnel catches other person with your driver’s license, they will charge traffic violation fine on that person and also on your driver’s license.

Suspension or Revocation of Driver’s License:

If the traffic police personnel checks your driver’s license with other person, they will inform the LTO Authority. Thereafter the LTO will take strict action by suspending your driver’s license for 1 to 2 months if it happened for the first time by a mistake or misunderstanding.

The LTO Authority is very strict about unauthorized use of a driver’s license. If the LTO finds out that you intentionally lend your driver’s license to other person or you have repeated it, they will revoke your driver’s license and won’t allow you to apply for a new driver’s license for next 1 to 2 years.

Blame of Violation, Accident and Damage:

If the person, using your driver’s license while driving a vehicle, meets an accident then it will be a disaster for both of you. The traffic violation, accident and damage to other persons/vehicles will be blamed on both the person driving the vehicle and the driver’s license holder (you).

If that person gets into a serious accident and the opposite vehicle owner files a complaint then you will get into a serious legal case with dangerous consequences.

Insurance Claim Refusal and Financial Burden:

If your car gets into an accident, the vehicle insurance provider approves an insurance claim to cover your vehicle damages. But the vehicle insurance company will refuse your claim if someone else is driving your car with your driver’s license.

That person does not have their own license which means they are not allowed to drive a car/vehicle. So, the insurance claim will be refused on the grounds of driving a vehicle without a valid driver’s license because that person does not have their own license, they have yours which is not valid for that person.

Criminal Charges and Court Cases:

You lend your driver’s license to other person and that person gets involved in a criminal charge caused by an accident or other things. In this situation, the Philippine Police will levy criminal charges on both you and that person.

In case of criminal activities, you will face a legal case and several visits to the court until the judgement is announced. You may also get to pay penalty and imprisonment for several months to years depending upon the seriousness of the crime and law rules.

What to Do When Someone Ask to Lend Your Driver’s License

When someone asks you to lend your driver’s license to them, you should simply say NO. You don’t need to be rude, you can deny it politely and also tell them the reason for not lending your driver’s license to them.

Even if it is your friend, sibling, cousin, spouse, son, daughter, boss, colleague or anyone, you should Never lend your driver’s license to other person. Just remember that it is unlawful and illegal to give your driver’s license to anyone.

Ideal Advice

When someone asks you to lend your driver’s license, you should explain that it is illegal and then help them get their own driver’s license. You can guide that person to follow the step-by-step process to obtain a LTO Student Permit or new driver’s license in the Philippines.

Can You Lend Your Driver’s License for Identity Verification?

No, you cannot lend your driver’s license to other person for their identity verification. It may happen that your friend asks for your driver’s license to use it for identity verification and not for driving a vehicle. You may think that it’s safe but it is still illegal as per law.

So, when someone asks for your driver’s license for any purpose, you must not agree for it. You must not lend your driver’s license to anyone irrespective of their purpose to use your driver’s license.

Ideal Advice

When a friend asks you to lend your driver’s license because they want to use it for their identity verification, you should say no and tell the reason for that. Instead of lending your driver’s license, you can help your friend to get their own Government Issued ID that they can use for identity verification anytime and anywhere in the Philippines.

Can You Lend Your Driver’s License in an Emergency?

You may think that a medical emergency is a critical situation and you should help your friend. You are absolutely right, you should help them but you should NOT lend your driver’s license to anyone even though it is an emergency.

Ideal Advice

When a friend asks you to lend your driver’s license for an emergency situation, you should politely refuse it and then help that friend in all possible legal ways to handle the emergency.

You can call up an ambulance for help if needed. You can also offer your friend that you can drive your car and take them in your car to a hospital or any other place they need to go. You can book a taxi and pay the fare for your friend so that they can reach the destination without any hassle.

See, there are many ways to help your friend without violating the law, but never lend your driver’s license to anyone as it is not allowed by the law.

Conclusion

Lending your driver’s license to someone is never a good idea. Above I have explained the illegality of lending driver’s license and its unauthorized use. Hope that you have understood it well.

I have also shared possible risks and consequences of lending your driver’s license to other person. In case you still have a question, kindly ask it in the comment section.

FAQs