A damning new report from the National Audit Office (NAO) has concluded that the longstanding problem of long waiting times for practical driving tests in Great Britain is likely to persist for another two years.

The conclusions have sparked fresh frustration among learners and the driving instruction industry.

It comes as the DVSA announces its new Chief Executive, Beverley Warmington, whose most pressing job is to cut record-breaking driving test waiting times.

Broken

Published today, the NAO’s investigation into driving test delays highlights systemic issues at the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) — the body responsible for administering practical car tests — which have prevented it from meeting its target of reducing average waits to seven weeks by the end of 2025.

Instead, learners are currently facing average delays of around 22 weeks, with around 70% of test centres operating at the maximum 24-week wait.

The backlog of tests was initially caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, during which around 1.1 million tests were not carried out.

Although many have since been scheduled, an estimated 360,000 tests remain unbooked, leaving thousands of learner drivers waiting months for an appointment.

 

Issues identified

The NAO found that DVSA had repeatedly struggled to recruit and retain sufficient numbers of qualified driving examiners.

Despite 19 recruitment campaigns since 2021, the agency has only managed a net increase of 83 examiners, far short of its target of 400.

This shortfall has constrained the number of tests DVSA can provide and slowed efforts to cut waiting times.

High examiner exit rates were attributed to uncompetitive pay and safety concerns, according to the report, with morale and retention proving a significant obstacle to expanding capacity.

Hundreds of examiners are physically attacked each year.

The NAO also criticised the DVSA’s outdated test booking system, which has failed to cope with post-pandemic demand.

The system’s vulnerability to automated booking programmes, known as bots, has made it difficult for genuine learners to access test slots, with third-party intermediaries snapping up appointments and reselling them at inflated prices.

Nearly one in three learners are reported to have used third-party services, sometimes paying up to £500 for a test slot that would normally cost £62.

Economic and personal

The report highlighted the broader consequences of prolonged delays.

Learner drivers, particularly those needing a licence for work, education or caring responsibilities, have been adversely affected, with some respondents reporting lost income or career opportunities because they cannot take a test in a timely way.

Gareth Davies, Head of the NAO, warned that without urgent and decisive reforms, the service will continue to fall short of what learners expect: “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,” he said in a statement.

Official response

The Department for Transport (DfT) and DVSA have acknowledged the scale of the issue and outlined plans to modernise the system.

Proposals include banning bot bookings, restricting test purchases to learners themselves, deploying military examiners at civilian test centres to boost capacity, and investing in a new digital booking platform scheduled to roll out between 2026 and 2030.

However, the NAO warned that these measures are unlikely to yield significant improvements in the immediate future, meaning the backlog and extended waiting times could remain a feature of the driving landscape until November 2027.

 

 

Industry

Instructor associations and motoring groups have responded with concern, emphasising the need for sustained reforms that not only increase testing capacity but also improve transparency and fairness in booking processes.

Emma Bush, managing director of AA Driving School, says the report “confirms what learners and driving instructors already know”, adding that “it is unacceptable that more than 5 years since the pandemic began, learner drivers and instructors are still dealing with fallout”.

DIA CEO Carly Brookfield commented that the report “brings necessary scrutiny to bear on not only DVSA’s lack of progress on these issues, but also the slowness of Ministers in supporting the agency in actions”.

Many argue that unless systemic weaknesses are tackled head-on, including exminer pay, conditions and recruitment, learner drivers will continue to face prolonged waits and being driven into the arms of costly third-party intermediaries.

The NAO report underscores that while some policy intentions may be in place, practical delivery remains a significant challenge for the DVSA.

Read the full report here.