DVSA backlogs leave millions of Britons waiting for driving tests as motorists fume 'enough is enough'

According to a Freedom of Information request, the average waiting time for a driving test at the start of February was 14.8 weeks but has since risen 20 per cent to 17.8 weeks in May.

The data found a 33 per cent rise in the number of test centres with waiting times of more than five months with experts warning that “enough is enough”.

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Camilla Benitz, managing director at the AA Driving School, explained that being able to drive is not a “luxury” and for many people is an “absolute necessity” to get them to work, education and employment.

At the start of May, most test centres had average waiting times higher than pre-pandemic numbers, which was roughly six weeks.

The research revealed that over half (51 per cent) of UK test centres have seen average waiting times increase this year, while only a fifth (20 per cent) have seen an improvement.

Benitz stated: “Enough is enough. The additional test slots the DVSA added to the system between October and March have made no difference to the average waiting time learners up and down the country are facing.”

She added more must be done to address this issue. She said:“Being able to drive is not a luxury – for many people it is an absolute necessity to get them to work, education and employment.

“We need to see a renewed commitment from the DVSA to make additional driving test slots available.

“But also to recruiting and retaining more examiners so additional learner test slots do not come at the expense of other vital DVSA services, such as driving instructor training exams, which we have seen falling availability of recently.”

Looking at the data by region, 71 test centres had an average waiting time of 24 weeks between February 5 and May 6.

Meanwhile, test centres which increased their average waiting time between February and May to 24 weeks included Barnet and Hornchurch in London.

It also includes Basingstoke, Dorchester, Greenham, Hornchurch, Inveraray, Ipswich, Kettering, Maidstone, Newport (Isle of Wight), Nottingham, Plymouth and Whitby.

Elsewhere, the DVSA data recorded more pass rates in automatic cars than people driving in manual vehicles.

The agency found that 17 per cent of all vehicle passes were in automatic cars last year, compared with 13.4 per cent the previous year.

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Automatic driving tests were introduced over 50 years ago on June 2, 1969, when a separate driving licence group was issued.