Most HGV driver CVs get skipped for one reason: the licence category and the Driver Certificate of Professional Competence are buried where a busy transport manager never scans. This is a full worked Class 1 example you can copy. The structure is built on 240 real UK HGV adverts we read by hand. Keep the layout, swap in your own facts.
Four numbers shape everything below. Across those 240 adverts, the Driver CPC appears in 60%, a tachograph reference in 57%, multidrop or distribution work in 60%, and Class 2 (category C) is actually named more often than Class 1. Two more numbers matter just as much for what to leave out: only 16% ask for experience and only 2% ask for a clean licence. So the card and the category go at the top, the work you do gets named, and you do not disqualify yourself over points or a short history.
The worked example
This is a fictional but realistic Class 1 driver applying for a trunking and distribution post. Read it once top to bottom, then read the notes underneath.
Mark Reilly
Class 1 HGV Driver (Category C+E) · Driver CPC valid to 2029 · Digital tacho card
Leeds · 07700 900123 · mark.reilly@email.com
Licence and qualifications
- Category C+E (Class 1, artic) and Category C (Class 2, rigid)
- Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (Driver CPC) valid to 2029
- Digital tachograph driver card, current
- ADR (dangerous goods) not held, willing to obtain
- No current points
Profile
Class 1 driver with four years on trunking and multidrop distribution across the North and Midlands. Reliable on early and night starts, confident with curtainsider and refrigerated trailers, and careful with tachograph hours and daily walkaround checks. Clean record with customers for on-time delivery.
Driving experience
Class 1 Driver (Trunking and Distribution)
Northbound Logistics, Leeds · Mar 2023 to present
- Trunk runs and multidrop distribution across the M62 and M1 corridors, 8 to 12 drops per shift.
- Curtainsider and refrigerated work, loading and securing to standard, managing tachograph hours within drivers' hours rules.
- Daily walkaround checks and defect reporting, with a clean DVSA roadside check history.
- Consistent on-time delivery record across regular contracted routes.
Class 2 Driver (Rigid, Multidrop)
Pennine Distribution, Bradford · Jun 2021 to Mar 2023
- Rigid multidrop delivery to retail and trade customers, up to 20 drops per day.
- Handball and tail-lift work, proof-of-delivery handling, customer-facing at every stop.
Other
- Flexible on shift patterns: days, nights and weekends
- Manual handling trained
- Full clean enhanced references available
Why this order works
The category and card are in the header. A transport manager scans for the licence category and a valid Driver CPC first. Putting category C+E and your Driver CPC beside your name confirms the two biggest screens in the first two seconds. Burying them under qualifications at the bottom is the most common reason a qualified driver gets passed over.
The work is named in the language adverts use. "Trunking", "multidrop", "distribution", "curtainsider", "refrigerated". Multidrop or distribution work appears in 60% of adverts. "Driving" on its own tells the reader nothing they can match.
You do not disqualify yourself. Only 2% of adverts ask for a clean licence and only 16% ask for experience. A new-pass driver should lead with category and Driver CPC and state they are newly qualified. A driver with a few points should not leave themselves off the market. See the full analysis of 240 UK HGV adverts for what employers actually screen for.
Experience leads with scope and reliability, not duties. "8 to 12 drops per shift" is scope. "Clean DVSA roadside check history" is reliability. Both beat "responsible for deliveries", which a transport manager cannot score. See our guide on how to highlight achievements on a CV.
How to adapt it to your post
Read the advert's essential criteria and make sure each one is evidenced somewhere in your CV in the advert's own words. Paste the advert into our free job description analyser to pull the exact keywords, then run a free CV check to see whether your draft answers them. The role-specific guide lives at /cv-for/hgv-driver.
Frequently asked questions
What should an HGV driver CV include?▾
In order: your name and contact details, your licence categories (Class 1 / C+E or Class 2 / C), your Driver Certificate of Professional Competence and digital tachograph card status, a short statement naming the work you do (trunking, multidrop, distribution), then your driving experience with real routes, hours and reliability. Across 240 UK HGV adverts the Driver CPC appears in 60% and the licence category is the first thing scanned, so both belong at the top.
Do I need experience to get an HGV driving job?▾
Often no. Only 16% of the 240 UK HGV adverts we read require experience, and 10% explicitly welcome newly qualified or new-pass drivers. The licence category and a valid Driver CPC matter far more than years on the road. If you are newly qualified, say so plainly and lead with your card and category.
Does my driving licence need to be clean for an HGV job?▾
Usually not. Only 2% of the adverts we read asked for a clean licence. Most employers care about the right category and a valid Driver CPC, not a spotless record. Points do not automatically rule you out, so do not leave yourself off the market over them.
How do I show Class 1 and Class 2 on my CV?▾
Use the licence terms transport managers scan for. Class 1 is category C+E (artic), Class 2 is category C (rigid). Put the category in the header beside your name, and name the equipment you have driven (curtainsider, refrigerated, container, tipper) in your experience.
How long should an HGV driver CV be?▾
One page is usually enough, two at most. Transport managers scan rather than read, so a tight CV that leads with category, Driver CPC, tachograph and the work you do beats a long history. Use the space for routes, hours and reliability, not a personal brand.