DVLA 'declare now' warning over common medical condition 1.5m Brits suffer with

Motorists across the UK have been issued a warning regarding undeclared health conditions that could risk them losing their licence and paying a hefty fine.

It is crucial that motorists inform DVLA about any health conditons as it could impact the ability to drive safely and the government website warns that "you may be prosecuted if you're involved in an accident as a result". As well as the risk of losing licences, motorists could be fined up to £1,000. However, there are many health conditions that drivers are unaware has to be declared to DVLA, including a common one that affects 1.5 million people in the country.

Research carried out by Cinch, an online used car retailer, found that 1.5 million people across the UK are diagnosed with a condition known as sleep apnoea.

Sleep apnoea is a severe medical condition that causes repeated pauses in breathing during sleep. The most common type is obstructive sleep aponea, which is caused by the throat muscles relaxing and narrowing the airway resulting in an obstruction of airflow.

It is advised that those who suffer from the medical condition should avoid driving as it causes excessive sleepiness that impairs your ability to drive safely.

Ben Welham, motoring expert at Cinch, said: "With excessive sleepiness causing poor concentration and reaction times, effects of sleep aponea can be very dangerous behind the wheel."

You should tell DVLA if you have confirmed moderate or severe obstructive sleep aponea syndrome (OSAS) with excessive sleepiness, either narcolepsy or cataplexy or both, or any other sleep condition that has caused excessive sleepiness for at least three months.

In addition to significant daytime sleepiness, other symptoms of sleep aponea include making gasping, snorting or choking noises, waking up a lot, loud snoring, mood swings, and morning headaches.

The NHS says that "it can be hard to tell if you have sleep aponea" and recommends asking someone to stay with you while you sleep to check for the symptoms.

To find out which other conditions must be declared to DVLA, you can visit the agency's online checker page.