Updated 30 March 2023

Introduction

A consultation lets you give your views on new or changing government policies. We take your responses into consideration before government ministers make any final decisions.

We ran a consultation between 25 January and 8 March 2022 about changing some policies that affect learning to drive and driving tests. We wanted to get your views on ideas to:

• encourage learner drivers to be better prepared when they take their car driving test
• reduce the number of car driving test appointments that are wasted
• collect better data about how well driving instructors prepare learner drivers
• give learner drivers better information about driving instructors
• update when and how we carry out the eyesight check at the start of the driving test
• replace paper pass certificates with digital pass certificates

20,960people responded to the consultation

Ministers would like to thank everyone who contributed their views to this consultation.

This chart shows a breakdown of who responded to the consultation.

Type of respondent	Percentage
Learner driver or rider	70.4%
Approved driving instructor (ADI) or driving school	14.0%
Experienced driver	8.9%
Newly-qualified driver (passed a car or motorcycle test in the last 2 years)	3.0%
Other	2.9%
HGV or bus trainer or training school	0.3%
Motorcycle trainer or training school	0.2%
Road safety organisation	0.2%
Industry representative organisation	0.1%

We asked respondents how many employees they have if they were a business. 3,716 respondents answered this question. This chart shows a breakdown of responses.

Number of employees	Percentage
1 to 9	40.1%
10 to 49	2.1%
50 to 249	0.3%
250 or more	1.0%
Do not know	0.7%
Not applicable	55.8%

We also received comments in writing. These have also been taken into account.

This document explains what:

• we proposed
• has been decided
• happens next
• feedback we received

Why we put these proposals forward

We currently have very high demand for driving tests. There are 3 main reasons for this:

• fewer tests than usual have taken place because of restrictions and other factors related to the pandemic
• learner drivers who are not yet ready to take their test have heard that waiting times are high, causing them to book earlier than they normally would
• the pass rate for driving tests – for many years, less than half of people pass on their first attempt, meaning they’ll need to take at least one more test

Many driving instructors tell us that some learner drivers want to pass their driving test as quickly and cheaply as possible. They say they are unable to stop their pupils from booking a test before they are ready.

We put forward some of these proposals because we think they’ll:

• encourage learner drivers to be better prepared for their driving test
• help to reduce the number of driving test appointments that are wasted
• give us more flexibility in how and when we can carry out driving tests

Other proposals were to help us to:

• find out more about what information learner drivers and their families want to know when choosing a driving instructor – which in the longer term will help learner drivers to find the best driving instructor for them
• move to replace paper pass certificates with digital versions, saving millions of sheets of paper each year

Summary of proposals and decisions

Proposal	Feedback about the proposal	Decision and next steps
People will need to wait 28 working days before being able to take another car driving test after failing one, rather than the current 10 working days	30.4% agree	Ministers would like to introduce the proposal. The date the change will take effect will be confirmed nearer the time.
People would need to move or cancel their car driving test at least 10 full working days before the appointment to avoid losing their test fee, rather than the current 3 full working days	48.5% agree	Ministers would like to introduce the proposal. The date the change will take effect will be confirmed nearer the time.

Driving instructors only

Proposal	Feedback about the proposal	Decision and next steps

Driving instructors would be legally required to display their approved driving instructor (ADI) or trainee driving instructor registration certificate in the windscreen of their car when they bring people for driving tests	54.2% agreed	Ministers would like to introduce the proposal. This will require primary legislation. In the meantime, we will work with instructors to encourage them to display their certificates.

What we proposed

We proposed that people will need to wait 28 working days before being able to take another car driving test after failing one, rather than the current 10 working days.

We proposed this to:

• reduce the number of people attempting the test when they’re not ready, because they would know they would have to wait longer to be able to take it again if they failed
• mean that people who fail have more time to take further training before taking the test again

What’s been decided

Ministers have decided to extend the period a candidate can take another car driving test from 10 working days to 28 working days.

They have decided this because:

• the period gives candidates time to take extra training
• it will have a positive impact on car driving test waiting times
• gaining more knowledge, skills and experience will help keep new drivers safe at the crucial point that they drive on their own for the first time
• better prepared drivers should have a positive effect on road safety
• one-third of learner drivers admit this will encourage them to only book their test when they are ready while waiting times remain the same – this increases to 42.8% if waiting times reduce

What will happen next

This change can be made by ‘secondary legislation’. This is law created by ministers under powers given to them by an Act of Parliament (primary legislation).

The Department for Transport will draft a document called a Statutory Instrument (SI) to make changes to the law. This will be published with an explanatory memorandum, which outlines the purpose of the SI and why the change is necessary.

When the change will happen

The dates the SI will be made and come into effect as law have not yet been confirmed.

Sign up for email alerts to be told when the dates are confirmed.

Feedback we received about this proposal

We asked 3 questions about this proposal. They were:

• to what extent people agreed that the minimum period between failing a test and taking another attempt should be increased from 10 to 28 working days
• whether the proposal would encourage people to only book their test when ready if waiting times remain the same
• whether the proposal would encourage people to only book their test when ready if waiting times were reduced

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To what extent do you agree or disagree that the standard period before which an unsuccessful candidate can make a further application for a test should be extended from 10 to 28 working days?

Overall, 20,940 respondents answered this question.

30.4%of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with this proposal

In total, 30.4% of respondents agreed with the proposal and 63.1% disagreed with the proposal. This means that 32.7% more people disagreed with this proposal than agreed with it.

Response	Percentage
Strongly agree	13.8%
Agree	16.6%
Neither agree nor disagree	6.5%
Disagree	19.1%
Strongly disagree	44.0%

Type of respondent	Total who agreed	Neither agree nor disagree	Total who disagreed	Total
A learner driver	28.1%	6.7%	65.3%	100%
A newly qualified driver	28.4%	6.0%	65.7%	100%
An experienced driver	36.6%	5.5%	57.9%	100%
An approved driving instructor or driving school	37.1%	6.1%	56.9%	100%
A motorcycle trainer or training school	19.6%	3.9%	76.5%	100%
An HGV or bus trainer or training school	35.3%	5.9%	58.9%	100%
An industry representative organisation	52.4%	0.0%	47.6%	100%
A road safety organisation	74.3%	5.1%	20.5%	100%
Other	35.4%	9.0%	55.5%	100%
Total	30.4%	6.5%	63.1%	100%

Responses to the proposal, indicated that 31% of respondents strongly agreed or agreed with this proposal. 63% of all respondents responding strongly disagreed or disagreed that the standard period before which an unsuccessful candidate can make a further application for a test should be extended from 10 to 28 working days.

Learner drivers consisted of 70% of all respondents. 28% of learner drivers strongly agreed or agreed with this proposal, 7% neither agreed nor disagreed. This left a majority of 65% who either strongly disagreed or disagreed with the standard period before which an unsuccessful candidate can make a further application for a test being extended from 10 working days to 28 working days.

Newly qualified drivers held a similar opinion, as did ADIs. 28% of newly qualified drivers strongly agreed or agreed, 6% neither agreed nor disagreed and the majority, (66%), strongly disagreed or disagreed with the proposal to extend the standard period before which an unsuccessful candidate can make a further application for a test being extended from 10 working days to 28 working days. 37% of ADIs strongly agreed or agreed and 57% strongly disagreed or disagreed with the proposal.

Respondents felt that extending the period to when a learner driver can rebook a test was unfair and that it would penalise those learners who failed their driving test due to ‘silly errors’ because of feeling nervous on the day.

As a newly qualified driver , I agree that clients should take at least 28 days when fail to re-book their practical test.

28 days wait for test would make people books tests and hope to be ready since it will be at least 4 weeks in advance.

I think the idea of enforcing a time limit of 28 days on rebooking tests after failing is counter productive. I failed a test on Wednesday, got a cancellation the next Saturday, and passed! If I had waited any longer I would have forgotten much of what I had been preparing for.

If a driver makes one or more silly mistakes that are due to nervousness, it is unfair to penalise them with a delay of 28 days, when they do not necessarily need more practice and tuition, they simply need a different set of circumstances and maybe even just a different examiner..

The points brought up were mostly good, the eyesight test and the premise of extending but for a learner you care a lot about the cost of learning to drive and extending the rebook to a whole month and extending number of days needed to cancel to 10 days were good ideas but I think were extended by too much. Having to wait a whole month means you have to book lessons for that month costing more money (although that’s not a problem at the moment since you can’t book a test within 6 months anyway! Which is ridiculous) Most people would only make a small mistake on their test so wouldn’t need that much time to prepare, and if you think you would you’d book a test further in advance anyway…

If the measure would encourage learner drivers to only book a test when they’re ready

We asked people who said they were learner drivers to what extent they agreed that the measure would encourage them to only book when they were ready.

14,753 respondents answered these questions.

1 in 3learner drivers said the change would encourage them to only book their test when they were ready while waiting times remain the sameChange to table and accessible view

Total who agreed

Neither agree not disagree

Total who disagreed

Would encourage me to only book my test when ready if waiting times remained the same

33.3%

13.1%

53.6%

100%

Would encourage me to only book my test when ready if waiting times were reduced

42.8%

15.0%

42.2%

100%

Comments submitted included:

I don’t see how extending from 10 to 28 days to book a re-test is going to help with the pass rate of students.

I really DO NOT think the wait time for rebooking a test should be extended at all. When I failed a test for a silly mistake, I was ready to retake a week later after working on it with my instructor…

I disagree with waiting 28 days too Ree-book [sic] a test because lots of people are just nervous the first time so after failing the first time they know what to expect and are more relaxed so I think it’s more to due with being nervous than not being prepared.

With 5-6 months waiting times to book a test, I don’t see how extending from 10 to 28 days to book a re-test is going to help with the pass rate of students. It will only add more time on top of the current waiting times.

I think you are not considering the cause of most fails, which in my opinion is anxiety, Extending the period that a drive can book another test after failing will just cause more pressure and anxiety to pass the test on the first time,,

Extending rebooking isn’t fair as lots of people don’t pass first time although they are ‘ready’ they just have nerves; so by extending to 28 days rebooking just means more wasted money on driving lessons as well as time.

I think the increase from 10-28 days to retake a test should be temporary due to the current demand since the pandemic. I also think that that test day times should be extended for this period to accommodate the demand.

To help tackle the waiting list for driving tests we have been working on a number of ways to increase the amount of driving test appointments available.

We wanted to update you on the things we have been working on:

Returning to 7 tests a day

From Monday 14 June 2021 we will be increasing the number of tests our examiners in England, Scotland and Wales carry out each day to 7 – this is the number carried out before the pandemic.

This change will allow us to increase capacity across the national network by an average of 15,000 to 20,000 tests per month.

We are doing this because our driving examiners are now used to carrying out additional COVID-19 safety measures, so we can now carry out 7 driving tests each day with little risk of over-running.

This means we can keep these safety measures in place to protect learner drivers and examiners whilst safely increasing the number of tests per day.

We will be increasing the number of tests by adding an additional test at the end of the working day so tests currently booked will not be affected.

We’ll also be able to start offering early morning and evening tests.

When will the new appointments be available to book?

We will start gradually adding new appointments on to the booking system on a daily basis from 9 June.

You or your pupils can check for new appointments at your local test centres on the book a driving test or the change your driving test services.

Alternatively if you are registered to use the book and manage driving tests for your pupils service you can use this to check for new appointments in your area.

We recently contacted candidates with a booking on hold to let them know that they needed to choose a test appointment date by 31 August or their booking will be cancelled.

We will be writing to them again to let them know that as we are returning to 7 tests a day, additional test appointments will be added to the booking service so more tests will be available to choose from.

Circumstances when pupils cannot take a driving test

Your pupils will not be able to take their driving test if they meet any of the following criteria:

• they have any coronavirus symptoms (high temperature, fever, new continuous cough, a change or loss of smell or taste from normal).
• they have been asked to self-isolate by NHS Test and Trace in the last 14 days.
• they are awaiting the results of a COVID-19 test or have had a positive test in the last 7 days.
• they have visited a school, college or other building that has been closed due to a COVID-19 outbreak in the last 7 days.
• they live with someone who has either tested positive for COVID-19 or had symptoms of COVID–19 in the last 14 days.

Areas where the new variant is spreading

In locations where there is an enhanced Covid response in place, we will write to candidates before their test to make them aware of this.

Our driving examiners will also ask all candidates these questions before taking them out on test. If they answer yes to any of the above criteria their test will be cancelled and they will be asked to reschedule.

To do this they can email us at customerservices@dvsa.gov.uk and we can help them look for the earliest possible appointment once they have finished self-isolating.

The importance of your pupils being ready for their test

It’s important that your pupils take their test only when both you and your pupil are confident they can pass. This will help them to avoid a lengthy wait for a retest and help us by not adding to the backlog of tests.

Reintroducing short term cancellations

We are also reintroducing the 3 working day short notice cancellation period for practical car tests. This was temporarily suspended when we restarted testing in July 2020 following the first lockdown.

All tests taking place from Thursday 17 June 2021 will be subject to the 3 working day short notice cancellation period.

We will be writing to all candidates with tests taking place from 17 June to let them know of this change.

If you or your pupil need to cancel a test within the 3 working day period as a result of a positive COVID-19 test result or having to self-isolate you will need to email us at customerservices@dvsa.gov.uk

Please put – COVID SHORT NOTICE CANCELLATION – in the subject of the email and we will look to reschedule the test for the earliest possible appointment.

To do this email us at customerservices@dvsa.gov.uk and we can help look for the earliest possible appointment once they have finished self-isolating.

You or your pupil may be asked to provide evidence when cancelling at short notice.

If your pupil cancels their test within the 3 working day period or fails to turn up to their test they will lose their test fee.

Potential contract for driving examiner recruitment

Another aspect of our ongoing work to reduce waiting times is recruiting additional driving examiners. We had a positive response to our recruitment campaign, but there are some areas of the country where we still need to recruit more examiners, including the South East.

To support this we are exploring options to temporarily contract in experienced driving assessors to qualify as driving examiners and will run a further recruitment campaign in the weeks ahead. 

More information

Check GOV.UK for the latest about:

• theory tests
• driving tests

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