Driving test backlog forces learners to pay up to £500 to resellers

Learners face an average wait time of 22 weeks

The target for reducing average driving test waiting times across Britain to seven weeks is not expected to be met for another two years, according to a report by the public spending watchdog.

The prolonged delay has led to nearly one in three learners resorting to paying third parties up to £500 to secure a test slot, the National Audit Office (NAO) revealed.

The inquiry found that the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has repeatedly failed to appoint a sufficient number of new examiners, despite multiple recruitment drives, thereby hindering its ability to increase available test slots.

The backlog was significantly worsened by Covid restrictions, which prevented 1.1 million tests from being conducted in the 2020/21 financial year. An estimated 360,000 of these tests remain unbooked.

Compounding the issue, the NAO noted that the DVSA struggles to accurately gauge the true demand for tests, as third parties frequently utilise automated programmes, or 'bots', to quickly book available slots.

Learners faced an average waiting time for a test in Britain of 22 weeks in September, compared with about five weeks in February 2020 before Covid struck.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has repeatedly failed to appoint a sufficient number of new examiners, an audit revealed (Getty/iStock)

The DVSA does not expect to meet its target of reducing the average waiting time to seven weeks until November 2027, the report said.

Its initial timeline for achieving this was by the end of 2025.

Exit rates among examiners are high because of “perceived uncompetitive pay and safety concerns”, the NAO found.

Only 83 more examiners are in place than in February 2021 – against a goal of 400 – despite 19 DVSA recruitment campaigns.

The NAO recommended that the DVSA and the Department for Transport (DfT) assess whether there are enough measures in place to ensure learners are able to book a test when they need to.

It also called on them to investigate how to boost the examiner workforce.

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: “The current system for providing driving tests in England, Scotland and Wales is not working satisfactorily, with long waiting times and exploitation of learner drivers by resellers of test slots.

“Our report recommends that the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and the Department for Transport take decisive action to restore a fit-for-purpose driving test service.”

Last month, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander announced that military driving examiners will be mobilised to test civilians.

Other measures aimed at tackling the backlog include combating the issue of people profiting from reselling tests, which have a standard fee of £62.

Only learners – not instructors – will be able to book slots, and they will also only be able to move the location of tests to centres near the original booking.

The DfT was approached for a comment.