Driving test backlog not expected to end until November 2027

A target for reducing average driving test waiting times in Britain to seven weeks is not expected to be met for another two years, according to the public spending watchdog.

Nearly one in three learners are paying third parties up to £500 to book a test because of the large backlog, a National Audit Office (NAO) report said.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has failed to appoint sufficient new examiners to enable it to increase test slots despite several recruitment drives, the inquiry found.

A total of 1.1 million tests could not be carried out in the 2020/21 financial year because of coronavirus restrictions, and an estimated 360,000 of these have still not been booked.

The NAO said the DVSA has struggled to understand the real demand for tests because third parties quickly book available slots using automated programmes, known as bots.

Learners faced an average waiting time for a test in Britain of 22 weeks in September, compared with about five weeks in February 2020 prior to the pandemic.

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 this year.

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.