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target to reduce average driving test wait time The seven-week target is not expected to be met across the UK for the next two years, according to a report from the public spending watchdog.
Long delays lead to nearly one in three learners having to pay up to £500 to a third party to secure a test slot, National Audit Office (No) appeared.
The investigation found the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) had repeatedly failed Appoint sufficient number of new examinersDespite several recruitment campaigns, its ability to increase available testing slots is being hampered.
The backlog had worsened due to Covid restrictions 1.1 million tests prevented from being conducted In the 2020/21 financial year. An estimated 360,000 of these tests remained unbooked.
Compounding the issue, the NAO said the DVSA struggles to accurately predict the real demand for tests, as third parties often use automated programs or ‘bots’ to quickly book available slots.
Learners in the UK had to wait an average of 22 weeks for testing in September, compared with around five weeks in February 2020, before Covid struck.
The report says the DVSA does not expect to meet its target of reducing the average waiting time to seven weeks until November 2027.
The initial deadline to achieve this was by the end of 2025.
The NAO found that the exit rate among examiners is high due to “perceived uncompetitive pay and safety concerns”.
Despite 19 DVSA recruitment drives there are only 83 more examiners in existence than in February 2021 against the target of 400.
The NAO recommended that the DVSA and the Department for Transport (DfT) assess whether adequate measures are in place to ensure that learners can book tests when they need to.
It also called on them to examine how to promote the examiner workforce.
Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: “The current system of providing driving tests in England, Scotland and Wales is not working satisfactorily, with long waiting times and learner drivers being exploited 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 driving test service fit for purpose.”
Last month, Transportation Secretary Heidi Alexander announced that military driving examiners would be deployed to test civilians.
Other measures aimed at tackling the backlog include tackling the problem of people profiting from reselling tests, the standard fee of which is £62.
Only learners – not instructors – will be able to book slots, and they will also be able to transfer the test location only to centers closer to the original booking.
The DfT was contacted for comment.