Driving Test Wait Times in Great Britain Projected to Reach Seven Weeks by November 2027
A National Audit Office (NAO) report reveals that the plan to reduce learner drivers' practical driving test wait times in Great Britain to seven weeks will not be achieved until November 2027, missing the government's original target to reach this by the end of 2025.
Currently, the average wait for a practical driving test is 22 weeks, with around 680,000 candidates who have passed the theory test yet to book their practical tests. Despite 19 recruitment campaigns since 2021, only a net increase of 83 driving test examiners has been achieved, falling short of the target to add 400 new examiners.
About 70% of test centres have every available slot fully booked for the maximum 24 weeks in advance. During the pandemic, a backlog of approximately 1.1 million tests accumulated, and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has been slow to respond to the increased demand and issues related to bot bookings.
Financially, the DVSA currently loses £24 per test, amounting to an estimated deficit of £44 million, as test fees have remained unchanged since 2009.
In response, the government has taken several measures including banning bots and third-party bookings, deploying military driving examiners, and plans starting in spring 2026 to limit test rescheduling and booking changes. Between June and November this year, the DVSA carried out 74,847 more tests compared to the same period last year, and these measures are expected to enable thousands more tests to be conducted next year.
