The driving licence counterpart was introduced in 1998 to display information that could not fit on the photocard driving licence. It includes penalty point information and provisional vehicle entitlements. After 17 years of dutifully doing its job the counterpart will be abolished on 8 June 2015. This means that from the 8 June 2015, DVLA will stop issuing the paper counterpart and those currently in circulation will no longer have any legal status and should be destroyed.

The reason for abolishing the counterpart is to reduce the burden on motorists. There are of course a vast number of businesses and organisations that currently check the counterpart to ensure their employees are legal to drive and meet their insurance requirements.

The employer may then use the ‘check code’ with the last 8 digits of the driving licence number to view the driver’s entitlements and penalty points. This free, 24/7 service will be available this spring via GOV.UK

Read more - http://www.rac.co.uk/business/business-services-blog/dvla-advice-on-paper-licence-changes