Licensing, insurance and the law
A physician diagnoses a patient with a condition that can cause a lapse of consciousness. From what age must the physician report it to DMV?
- From 14 years old. Correct answer
- From 16 years old.
- From 18 years old.
Why
Fourteen, which is below the age at which anyone in California can drive, and that is the point of it: the duty attaches to the patient's age rather than to whether they hold a license. A physician has to notify DMV about any patient of 14 or older whose medical condition could affect safe driving, and the example the handbook offers is a lapse of consciousness. Sixteen is the minimum age to get a driver's license when you are under 18, and under 18 is when a license carries the word provisional, so both of the other answers are real ages from the licensing rules rather than from the reporting one. A physician is not the only route: law enforcement or a family member can also refer a driver by submitting a Request for Driver Reexamination.
Where this comes from
California Driver's Handbook, June 2025 edition. The correct answer is From 14 years old.
- Section 5. An Introduction to Driving, page 9
- Section 2. Getting an Instruction Permit and Driver's License › Applying For A Driver's License, page 3
- Section 2. Getting an Instruction Permit and Driver's License › Minor's Restrictions and Exceptions, page 4
- Section 12. Driver Safety › Reexamination, page 80
- Section 2. Getting an Instruction Permit and Driver's License › Applying For An Instruction Permit, page 3
The rule behind this one
License, points and insurance in California goes through the whole topic, with the page of the California Driver's Handbook behind every rule.
More on licensing, insurance and the law
- Your California driver's license is not REAL ID compliant. Which of these can you still use it for?
- You have a California ID card but no driver's license or instruction permit. What does the ID card let you do?
- You are 16 and applying for an instruction permit. Your parents share joint custody of you. Who has to sign your application?
- You are under 18 and DMV has just issued your instruction permit. When can you start using it to practice driving?