UK drivers around the world have been experiencing difficulty in hiring cars because they are unable to access their driving records with the DVLA.

Under new arrangements that came into force one day after the paper part of the driving licence was abolished, drivers need to access their driving record online before they can hire a car.

Since it was launched on Monday the DVLA site has crashed numerous times, much to the consternation of UK drivers at home and around the globe.

UK motorists have been turning to social media to express their frustration and many Britons are overseas, unable to hire vehicles as they wrangle with the DVLA and car hire firms.

There have also been reports that some motorists have been unable to produce their national insurance number when requested to do so by car hire companies. There have been calls from some quarters to change the requested national insurance number to the driver's passport number.

The fact that the DVLA website has been very slow or inoperable has added to frustrations.

The introduction of the new system has also confused car hire firms. According to the BBC, one Bristol car hire firm said that a queue of 20 people had formed at one point as employees struggled to access online details.

Oliver Morley, the DVLA’s chief executive, said: “We are currently experiencing exceptionally high demand for this service. We are aware some customers are experiencing issues with the website and we are working very hard to resolve this as quickly as possible. We are sorry for any inconvenience.”