2026 Driving Law Changes: Motability Costs, Seatbelts, Eye Tests and Tax

Every new year brings a wave of "rules changing for drivers" headlines. Some are firm, some are proposals, and some are rumours that have drifted a long way from the original announcement. Sorting one from another matters, because the cost of getting it wrong is real: fines, points, a ban or a lapsed licence.

A recent Get Surrey round-up of 2026 motoring changes pulls together several threads at once: possible drink-drive-limit reductions, Motability-related costs, driver eyesight and seatbelt requirements, and London congestion-charge changes. This piece goes behind the headline to look at what the current law says, what is genuinely on the table, and what drivers can sensibly do now.

What the story covers

The Get Surrey article reviews "potential and reported" changes, and that wording matters. It is a mixture of measures already in force (the London congestion charge adjustments, for example) and ideas that have been floated, consulted on or reported but are not yet law (a lower drink-drive limit being the obvious one).

The main themes are:

• Drink-drive limits: possible reductions in England and Wales.
• Motability: reported additional costs for people on the scheme, with a figure of around £400 featuring in the headline.
• Eyesight: greater focus on driver vision, including tighter checks for older motorists.
• Seatbelts: continued emphasis on compliance and enforcement.
• London congestion charge: changes to the daily charge and electric vehicle discounts.
• Tax: vehicle excise duty (VED) changes from April.

I haven't repeated the article's detail line by line. Where figures are uncertain, I flag that and point you to the official source.

Why it matters

Motoring rules rarely change in one dramatic moment. They tend to creep in through budgets, consultations, strategy documents and enforcement priorities. A driver who only reads the headline can miss the practical effect, such as a higher upfront cost, a new test, or cameras being used to spot an offence that was always illegal but rarely detected.

Three trends sit behind this year's stories.

Enforcement is getting smarter. Camera technology is increasingly able to spot behaviour such as phone use and seatbelt non-use. Our post on Leicestershire camera vans targeting seatbelt offences shows how this works in practice. The law has not changed, but the chance of being caught has.

Costs are shifting. Tax, charging zones and scheme-related costs keep moving, often through the Budget rather than motoring legislation. That is why a Motability customer might feel a change that other drivers never notice.

Safety policy is looking at the driver, not just the car. Vehicles are safer than ever, yet the human factors (vision, alcohol, restraint use, distraction) remain the focus of road safety thinking.

The legal angle

Here is what the law says today, which is the safest baseline to work from whatever happens next.

Drink-driving

Under the Road Traffic Act 1988, the prescribed limits in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are 35 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of breath, 80 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of blood, or 107 milligrammes per 100 millilitres of urine. Scotland has had lower limits since December 2014: 22 microgrammes in breath, 50 milligrammes in blood and 67 milligrammes in urine.

Those limits are the legal line, not a safe amount to drink. Drink-driving can bring a minimum 12-month ban, an unlimited fine and, in serious cases, imprisonment. You can also be charged for being in charge of a vehicle while over the limit, even if you were not driving.

Calls to bring England and Wales in line with Scotland have been made for years. At the time of writing, a lower limit is a possibility being discussed rather than something drivers can rely on being in force. For more on the debate, see our explainer on the lower drink-drive limit.

Eyesight and the licence

Vision is a legal requirement for holding a licence, not just a matter of common sense. Drivers must be able to read a number plate (new-style plates) from 20 metres, wearing glasses or contact lenses if they usually need them. There are also minimum standards for visual acuity and field of vision, which are set out by the DVLA.

Two points often surprise people:

• You are legally required to tell the DVLA if you have a medical condition or eyesight problem that affects your ability to drive. Failing to do so can lead to a fine of up to £1,000, and could weigh heavily against you if you are involved in a collision.
• Licences for drivers aged 70 and over need renewing every three years, and the renewal relies on self-declaration of fitness to drive. This is the gap that proposals for compulsory eye tests for older drivers are aimed at. Our guide to the over-70 driver eye test debate covers that in more detail.

Police can also ask a driver to read a number plate at the roadside, and a failure can be reported to the DVLA, which may revoke the licence.

Seatbelts

The core rules sit in the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 and the Motor Vehicles (Wearing of Seat Belts) Regulations 1993. In general:

• Drivers and passengers must wear a seatbelt where one is fitted.
• The driver is legally responsible for ensuring children under 14 are properly restrained.
• A fixed penalty is £100, and if the matter goes to court the fine can reach £500.
• There are limited exemptions, including a valid medical exemption certificate. Simply finding a belt uncomfortable does not count.

Seatbelt offences have not traditionally carried penalty points, but a fine alone is not the whole story: insurers may take a dim view of unrestrained occupants after a crash, and injury claims can be affected.

Motability

The Motability Scheme lets people who receive certain disability benefits swap part of their allowance for a leased car, scooter or powered wheelchair. The £400 figure in the headline relates to reported costs affecting the scheme, but the detail depends on the vehicle, the lease and how government tax decisions filter through to Motability Operations. I'd be wary of treating any single number as universal. If you are on the scheme or about to join, the most reliable source is Motability Operations itself, along with the terms of your own lease.

London congestion charge

The daily charge in central London rose to £18 in January 2026, and the electric vehicle discount arrangements changed at the same time. We have covered the specifics in our guides to the congestion charge rise to £18 and the new EV rules, so I will not repeat them here. The key point is that charge-related penalty charge notices (PCNs) can still be challenged on the usual grounds, such as paid in time, wrong vehicle details recorded, or a procedural error.

What drivers should know

Rather than panic over headlines, a few sensible steps go a long way.

1. Separate "in force" from "proposed". Before changing anything, check whether a rule is law or just a consultation. The GOV.UK website and the Highway Code pages are the authoritative sources. A rumour in a social media post is not.

2. Do an honest eyesight check. If you haven't had an optician's test in two years, book one. Opticians recommend checks at least every two years, and more often if you have a condition that affects vision. The 20-metre number plate test is easy to try in a quiet car park: if you struggle, treat it as a warning. If you have a condition that might affect your driving, read the DVLA guidance on notifiable conditions.

3. Take seatbelts seriously, even on short trips. Most seatbelt fines happen on short, routine journeys when drivers feel they are at lowest risk. With camera enforcement spreading, the odds of being caught are rising. If you carry children, check each child's restraint is correct for their height and weight, not just present.

4. Don't try to calculate your limit. Body weight, food, metabolism and the strength of a drink all change the result, and "the morning after" is a real risk. The only reliable approach is not to drink if you plan to drive. If a lower limit does arrive in England and Wales, that approach will already be the right one.

5. If you are a Motability customer, read your paperwork. Check your lease terms, any advance payment and any notices from Motability Operations. If a cost seems unclear, ask them directly and keep a written record of the answer. Charities and advice organisations that support disabled drivers can also help you understand your options.

6. Mind your tax date. VED changes come in each April, and several readers miss that a new rate applies to a vehicle being taxed from then. Our guide to the April 2026 car tax changes walks through the new rates. Remember too that untaxed vehicles can trigger enforcement even if you have simply forgotten to renew, and that DVLA is clear about what happens if you fail to tax your vehicle.

7. Keep records for any penalty. If you receive a congestion charge PCN or another penalty, keep your payment confirmations, photographs and correspondence. The strongest challenges are usually built on evidence. For the process, see our guide to formal representations.

Looking ahead

Expect the rest of 2026 to produce more of the same: a steady stream of consultations, strategy documents and Budget measures that individually look modest but together reshape the cost and risk of driving.

A few things are worth watching:

• The drink-drive limit. Whether a reduced limit moves from discussion to legislation will depend on political appetite and parliamentary time. Until then, the current law stands.
• Older driver licensing. The debate over mandatory vision checks for older drivers is unlikely to go away. Any change would need careful design so that it protects road safety without unfairly pushing capable older drivers out of independence.
• Enforcement technology. Cameras that can detect seatbelt non-use, phone handling and other offences are spreading. Drivers should assume that behaviour once judged "unlikely to be noticed" is now more visible.
• Costs for disabled drivers. Any change affecting Motability customers deserves close scrutiny, because these are drivers for whom a car is often essential rather than optional.
• London charging. City Hall's approach to charging and vehicle discounts may keep evolving, so check Transport for London's official pages before you travel into a charging zone.

The bottom line

The Get Surrey round-up is a useful prompt, but the real value lies in understanding what each item means for your own driving. Some changes are already here, some are possible, and some are just talk. Treat the current law as your baseline, check official sources such as GOV.UK, the DVLA and Transport for London before acting, and keep proper records if you ever need to challenge a penalty.

This article provides general information about UK motoring and parking rules and is not legal advice. If you are facing a prosecution, a licence issue or a dispute over costs, consider speaking to a qualified solicitor or an appropriate advice organisation.