paper driver

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese ペーパードライバー (pēpā doraibā), from English paper + driver.

Noun

paper driver (plural paper drivers)

1. (rare, usually non-native speakers' English) A person who has a driver's license but never drives.
   • 1997 September 17, Mitch Sako, “NY TIMES: Japan's Economy Shrinks by 11.2% Annual Rate”, in soc.culture.japan.moderated‎^[1] (Usenet), retrieved 2022-05-23:

     But the average Japanese does not own a car (as an individual). I don't have the figures but someone told me that less than half of those of driving age do not own a car, moreso,^[sic] of those who do have a license, a relatively small percentage of those with licenses own their own car, many are paper drivers.

   • 2002 February 17, Eric Takabayashi, “I'm going to New Jersey via Wisconsin to pick up some Snickers and Mars”, in fj.life.in-japan‎^[2] (Usenet), retrieved 2022-05-23:

     There are people who surely should not drive. "Paper drivers" and at risk drivers should be recertified.

   • 2005 March 23, harv, “Interesting road rule in Japan.”, in aus.cars‎^[3] (Usenet), retrieved 2022-05-23:

     There are courses aimed at "Paper Drivers" people who get their license but never use it, I know people that have had their license for over 7 Years and never driven except for the tests

   • 2009, Kumiko Murata, Jennifer Jenkins, Global Englishes in Asian Contexts: Current and Future Debates‎^[4], page 22:

     If a person in Japan identifies her/himself as a paper driver, no non-Japanese is likely to find the intelligibility of the term difficult at all, but probably most non-Japanese will have no idea of the comprehensibility or the interpretability of the term. Almost all non-Japanese need to be taught that a paper driver is one who holds a legal driver's license but does not consider her/himself competent as a driver and usually uses the license only as a means of identification when legally necessary.

Translations

person who has a driver's license but never drives

• Japanese: ペーパードライバー (ja) (pēpā doraibā)