Earlier this year, the DVSA began placing limitations on who could book driving tests – only learner drivers themselves – and where tests can be moved to, as well as reducing how late a test can be cancelled without waiving the £62 fee to 10 working days in advance. The Government also says it’s increased the number of examiners by 160 (11 per cent) since the summer of last year.
“It’s clear the action we’re taking is delivering results,” Madders claims, “helping more learners get their licence and enjoy the opportunities that come with being able to drive.”
However, the chief executive of the Driving Instructors Association, Carly Brookfield, told Auto Express that while “some members are starting to report they feel that the situation is improving… these are mainly in areas where more effort has been to deploy more examiners – we’re not getting that message across the board.”
Brookfield admitted that the DVSA offering existing examiners more overtime has resulted in more than 30,000 extra slots being added to the system in September alone. However, she also highlighted how examiner retention remains low and that “[the] DVSA are still identifying thousands of breaches of the system a month… genuine pupils are also having their access or bookings suspended as the system doesn’t like their IP address, the phone they’re using, or how quickly they navigate the system”.
For now, the current 19.6-week wait remains almost three times the seven-week pre-Covid level: “We are still a long way off target, so no one should hand DVSA a bouquet yet,” Brookfield said.
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