POST office bosses in South Cumbria have expressed their concerns following the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) changes coming to place next year.

DVLA will cease its contract with the Post Office Ltd in March 2024, which will affect residents in the UK, including those in South Cumbria.

Currently the Post Office handles more than six million DVLA transactions annually, which costs the government about £3.2million per year. 

From March 2024 elderly and disabled drivers will be forced to renew their driving licences and pay vehicle tax online. 

Sub-postmistress of Millom Post Office Elaine Huston said the end of the contract is another 'loss of business for all the post offices.'

She said: "Every time we lose a service, it is a loss of income.

"People don't want everything online but that seems to be the way that it is leaning towards.

"It is inconvenient for the elderly and the vulnerable. Not everybody is capable of doing it online, and they are not going to have an option."

Owner of Salthouse Post Office in Barrow Marianne Livesey said it would have a 'massive impact' for her business.

She said: "We do car tax transactions so it will have a massive impact on us because it is a transaction that the post office does.

"It is going to affect a whole generation of people that can't or don't want to use the internet.

"We offer the service if people are a bit stuck using the computer or unable to do it.

"The post office is a point where the community comes to."

Manager and director of the Ulverston Post Office branch Billy Hughes said that any loss of business to the post offices is 'detrimental.'

He said: "The concern is on the people who don't have access to the internet and won't be able to use the DVLA online services.

"It is excluding people. Not all DVLA transactions are straightforward."

Mr Hughes is concerned that residents are not informed about the end of the contract.

He said: "We have mentioned it to people that have come into our branch and they didn't know anything about it.

"A lot of people do use the online service. What I don't like about this is that people will be forced to use that service when it should be down as individual choice."

A DVLA spokesman said: “The Post Office currently provide a limited range of DVLA’s services and an extension to the current contract has recently been agreed until March 31, 2024.

“We want our customers to be able to access our services as quickly and as easily as possible, and the role of front office counter services will form part of the considerations of any future service offerings.”