DVSA sets out
NEW plan to reduce Driving Test Waiting Times
 |
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has today (Wednesday 18 December 2024) set out a 7-point plan to reduce driving test waiting times, and get new drivers on road.
Lilian Greenwood,
Minister for the Future of Roads, said:
Passing your driving test is a life changing opportunity for millions – but sky-high waiting
times for tests in recent years have denied that opportunity to too many
people.
No one should have
to wait six months when they’re ready to pass, travel to the other side of the
country to take a driving test or be ripped off by unscrupulous websites just
because they can’t afford to wait.
The scale of the
backlog we have inherited is huge, but today’s measures are a crucial step to
tackle the long driving test wait times, protect learner drivers from being
exploited, and support more people to hit the road.
1. Recruit and train 450 Driving Examiners
DVSA will
recruit and train 450 driving examiners across Great Britain.
2. Review and improve the Rules for Booking Driving Tests
DVSA will
review and improve the driving test booking system to make sure that learner
drivers can book their driving test easily and efficiently.
To do
this, DVSA will follow these steps:
1. Launch a call for
evidence about the current rules and processes, which DVSA has done today (18
December 2024).
2. Analyse the
evidence and develop proposals to improve the rules and booking system.
3. Run a consultation
on the proposed improved rules.
4. Introduce the
improved rules - changing the law if necessary.
This work will take
time to complete, and it will take some time for learner drivers and driving
instructors to see improvements. But it will help to make the system fairer for
learners and better protect them from being exploited.
3. Introduce
tougher terms and conditions for the service driving instructors use to book
and Manage Car Driving Tests
for their Pupils
These new terms and
conditions will come into force on 6 January 2025.
They set out that
only driving instructors or businesses that employ driving instructors can use
the service to book car driving tests.
The new terms and
conditions make it clear that driving instructors and businesses must not book
driving tests on behalf of learner drivers they are not teaching.
They also stop
driving instructors and businesses from using a learner driver’s details to
book a driving test that they have no intention of that particular learner
driver using. This is sometimes done to create a placeholder so the test can be
swapped to another learner driver later.
If anyone breaks
the terms and conditions, DVSA can:
·
issue them with a warning notice
·
suspend their account
·
close their account
4. Consult on new proposals to increase the amount of time people have
to wait to book another test in certain situations
DVSA will run
a consultation on new proposals to increase the amount of time people have to
wait to book another test if they either:
·
make multiple serious or dangerous faults during
their driving test
·
physically or verbally assault their driving examiner
·
fail to attend their driving test without telling DVSA - and
consider charging them a penalty
Learner drivers
currently have to wait 10 working days before being able to book another test.
The consultation, which will launch at a later date, will set out the full
details of the potential options.
5. Increase the amount of notice you need to give to change or Cancel a Car Driving Test
without losing the fee
DVSA will
increase the amount of notice people need to give to change or cancel their car
driving test without losing their fee to 10 clear working days.
It’s currently set
at 3 clear working days. DVSA consulted on proposals to increase this
in 2022.
This change will:
·
encourage people to change or cancel their test sooner if they’re not
ready
·
give more chance for appointments to be used by someone else
DVSA is
working to bring in this change from spring 2025. The exact date has not yet
been confirmed. DVSA will let learner drivers and driving instructors
know when the date is confirmed.
Learner drivers will
still be able to apply for a refund in cases such as illness or bereavement.
DVSA will
continue to pay out-of-pocket expenses for any car driving tests it cancels
with fewer than 3 clear working days’ notice while it conducts a review of its
out-of-pocket expenses process.
6. Explore changing the current 24-week limit on how far ahead car driving testscan be booked
DVSA will
explore ways of changing how far ahead car driving tests can be booked. This is
currently set at 24 weeks.
Any
changes DVSA makes will be made so it can better understand how many
people want to take a driving test at each test centre.
7. Encourage learner drivers to be better prepared for their driving
test through the ‘Ready to Pass?’ campaign
DVSA will
continue to run its ‘Ready to Pass?’ campaign,
which 95% of users rate as useful, to encourage learner drivers to take the
right action to prepare for their driving test.
Research
from DVSA shows that about 23% of learner drivers take their first
attempt at the driving test within one month of starting driving lessons.
The campaign aims
to change this behaviour, and focuses on helping learner drivers to:
·
understand what skills they need to have mastered
·
prepare for their test by giving tips on managing nerves
·
take a realistic mock driving test
·
understand what will happen during their driving test
It also encourages
people who are not ready to pass to move their test back.
Reducing waiting times
The actions being
taken will help DVSA to provide 1.95 million car driving tests
between April 2024 and March 2025 and to reduce the waiting time to 7 weeks by
December 2025.
