DVSA has introduced another significant change to the driving test booking system.

Candidates are now limited to choosing from only their three nearest test centres when booking a practical test.

The move is the latest in a series of reforms designed to tackle long waiting times, reduce abuse of the booking system and ensure driving test appointments are allocated more fairly.

Where you are

Under the new arrangements, learners booking through the official DVSA system will only be presented with test centres closest to their home postcode, rather than being able to search freely across the country.

The DVSA says the change is intended to discourage speculative bookings and reduce the widespread practice of learners securing appointments at distant test centres purely to obtain an earlier test date.

For several years, learners have increasingly booked tests hundreds of miles from home before attempting to swap them for local appointments using cancellation-finding services or third-party booking platforms.

Critics argue this has distorted demand and made it more difficult for genuine local candidates to secure tests.

Historic highs

The latest restriction comes against a backdrop of continuing unprecedented pressure on the driving test system.

Although waiting times have improved slightly in some areas, many learners continue to face delays of five to six months or longer before securing a practical test.

Current DVSA figures show the average wait is roughly 22.7 weeks in England, 22.9 weeks in Scotland, and 17.3 weeks in Wales.

Most test centres across the country are operating at or near their maximum 24-week wait capacity.

The problem worsened following the COVID-19 pandemic, which created a backlog of hundreds of thousands of cancelled tests.

Despite the DVSA conducting record numbers of tests and recruiting hundreds of additional examiners, demand continues to outstrip supply.

 

Ch ch ch changes

The new nearest-centre rule follows several other recent changes introduced by the DVSA.

Earlier this year, the agency strengthened controls on third-party booking services and introduced new regulations requiring businesses that book tests on behalf of learners to hold a recognised business account.

Companies that fail to comply risk losing access to the booking system altogether.

The DVSA has also suspended hundreds of business booking accounts in recent months after identifying misuse of the system.

Investigations found some operators were allegedly booking tests in bulk before reselling appointments at inflated prices.

A further change increased the notice period required to change or cancel a practical test from three clear working days to ten working days, to reduce late cancellations and create greater certainty within the booking system.

What the new rules are

The new rules for booking and managing car driving tests were introduced in stages.

Rule subject	Old rule	New rule	Since when
Number of changes allowed	Up to 6 changes	Only 2 changes	Since 31 March 2026
Who can book your test	You or your driving instructor	Only you	Since 12 May 2026
Who can manage your test	You or your driving instructor	Only you	Since 12 May 2026
Using unofficial services to search the booking service for tests	Allowed	Not allowed	Since 12 May 2026
Where can you move your test	Any test centre	Only to the 3 nearest test centres	Since 9 June 2026

DVSA has repeatedly stated that tackling booking abuse remains a priority.

The agency believes that speculative bookings, automated booking software and test reselling have all contributed to making appointments harder to obtain for genuine candidates.

However, the latest reforms have generated mixed reactions across the driver training industry.

Many instructors support efforts to tackle bots, test reselling and booking manipulation, which have become increasingly common in recent years.

Others, however, have expressed concerns that restricting learners to their nearest centres could disadvantage those willing to travel to less busy areas to secure earlier appointments.

Some instructors also question whether the reforms address the fundamental issues of insufficient test capacity, poor morale amongst driver testing employees, low pay, and the churn among driving examiners.

Achieving success

NASP (National Association of School Principals) and The Driving Instructors Association (DIA) have previously argued that, while measures to improve booking integrity are welcome, they must be accompanied by meaningful increases in examiner numbers and testing capacity for waiting times to return to acceptable levels.

In a recent letter to Government ministers, the DIA warned that repeated changes to booking rules risk creating confusion among learners and instructors without fully resolving the underlying shortage of tests.

The Government has pledged to reduce average waiting times significantly as part of wider efforts to improve access to driving tests.

Measures already announced include examiner recruitment drives, overtime testing programmes and improvements to the booking system security.

However, so far these measures appear to have failed to make a significant difference to overall testing times.

When it comes to recruiting extra examiners, it appears that the number of existing examiners leaving the role has resulted in little improvement in the overall number of driving examiners.

 

That’s it

For learner drivers, however, the immediate effect of the latest rule is clear.

The days of searching the entire country for the quickest available test appointment appear to be over.

Whether the new restrictions help restore fairness to the booking system or create new frustrations remains to be seen, but they represent the strongest attempt yet by the DVSA to regain control of a system that has faced unprecedented pressure since the pandemic.

DVSA has proposed no further significant changes, though it may introduce further technical tweaks to system processes to help manage high regional demand.