2,378

of 5,000 signatures

To Chief Executive of DVSA Loveday Ryder

The government Practical Test website only shows Test dates for the next 6 months. For the majority of the time there are no Practical Tests anywhere on the system, anywhere in the country. This is costing some candidates employment that rely on getting Driving Licenses, just because they cannot get a Practical Test date, and is unfair to all students who have done the work to learn to safely drive alone, and deserve the opportunity to become a Full Driving License Holder. There is a basic issue; supply of Driving Tests is being outstripped by demand. Every full time Examiner conducts 7 Practical Test a day. Back in 2008 Reading had 16 Examiners and a Test Centre Manager, with the Examiners conducting roughly 112 Tests a day. Reading now has 3 Examiners (2 of which say they are leaving) conducting approximately 21 Tests a day. That is currently approximately 22,000 less Practical Tests a year, at just this one site. A situation that is duplicated at many, many others areas.

Petition text

The staff retention issue is true at Practical Test Centres across the UK, where the Examiners salary does not reflect area pay, and even unqualified local workers are paid more thousands more then professionally qualified Driving Examiners. There has been an escalating Examiner recruitment crisis after the government made changes to Examiner pay and conditions in 2010. The DVSA figures comparing Covid years, where all Practical Tests were cancelled for sections of time, to non Covid years, and blaming the candidates for booking earlier, are distractions from not meeting current Practical Driving Test demand. Review the Examiners salaries to comparable jobs in areas, including Driving Instructors in that area, and increase their salaries until you can recruit and retain your staff, if necessary increasing the Practical Test fee from £62 to £72 in order to fund doing so.

Our core demands:
1) Reinstate the technical qualification bonus that they pay to MOT Testers but not currently to Examiners.
2) Pay the London bonus to all sites in the London commuter belt, including Reading, not just those in the M25
3) Increase pay for all examiners through the UK, in order to make the profession more attractive again.

9 Dec 2024
Latest Government Select Committee on Lack of Practical Driving Tests
https://www.youtube.com/live/nGwjneYXpL8?app=desktop&si=gou5cOpYCXpjzkf7 In first session the AA and several others spoke about the retention of Examiners, creating lack of supply of Practical Driving Tests In the second session the head of the DVSA denied problems. Ms. Ryder never answered the point that pre Covid rate of 35 percent of Young People use to learn how to drive, and the failures of Test availability has caused that to fall to 27 percent, which will effect their work opportunities

23 Oct 2024
Thank you to MP Matt Rodda for asking about Driving Test Provision.
Firstly a Thank you for MP Matt Rodda for asking about Practical Test Provision and the future of the Reading Test Centre https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=P6DSZaFiKrM To all MPs, please continue to question the DVSA on their 'plan'. The current plan of advertising Nationally for 450 Examiners at a very low salary, and in the South 244, to create more Tests, is the same plan that the DVSA had 6 months ago, and a year before that, and that. They need to RETAIN their staff.

16 Jul 2024
Guardian Article sums up all of the current problems with getting Driving Tests
https://www.theguardian.com/money/article/2024/jul/04/they-have-you-over-a-barrel-how-scammers-touts-and-bots-took-over-driving-tests?fbclid=IwY2xjawEDTutleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHZr0GrKK8zJ-ZAZc4rqDjHHIlHF8ED-g1xq5E3i0pOat-usB_pmy2qhHsg_aem_Z8HE8mDv-VBGK8ohC5nsGg Not enough Practical Tests for everyone, scammers and bots, this well researched article highlights all of the continuing problems.

6 Jul 2024
On Average 15 Practical Driving Test Examiners Quit every month
When asked by the Transport Committee the head of the DVSA, Ms Ryder admitted that on average 15 Examiners quit every month. Every Examiner takes with them 7 Practical Tests a day. https://committees.parliament.uk/oralevidence/13455/pdf/ There aren't enough Practical Driving Tests because there aren't enough Examiners. Their aren't enough Examiners because the DVSA won't address why they cannot retain their staff.

28 Jun 2024
Waiting times have officially increased by an additional 20 Percent in 2024
Between February and May of 2024 waiting times for Practical Tests across the UK have increased by a further 20 percent. https://www.driving.org/failure-to-fix-driving-test-backlog-as-average-waiting-time-rises-20-in-2024/ The DVSA are not taking the necessary measure to recruit and retain Examiners, and this problem continues to increase.

25 May 2024
Driving Practical Test record shortage leads to Black Market Tests
The Shortage in Driving Practical Tests has led to Black Market Tests being immorally sold. If there were plenty of Driving Tests for everyone, the way they should be, this market would disappear, and horrible stories of ID fraud would go away. Sort out the Examiner recruitment crisis, provide enough Practical Tests for everyone that wants one and these problems will go away https://www.timeout.com/uk/city-life/hell-plates-inside-the-uks-driving-test-black-market

14 May 2024
Learners traveling 48 percent further to get Practical Tests, and escalating
The Examiner recruitment crisis is escalating creating even more chaos getting Practical Driving Tests. Insurance company Orange Marmalade predicts traveling distances to get any Practical Tests will continue to increase https://www.wearemarmalade.co.uk/driver-hub/news/going-to-new-lengths-for-a-test

7 May 2024
Latest Nonsense Stats from the DVSA on Driving Tests provision
The DVSA have just called their latest figures for Driving Tests 'recording breaking'. In 2007/2008 the DVSA conducted just shy of 1.76 million Practical Driving Tests in the UK. It has declined every year since then, and last year they conducted just shy of 1.34 million Practical Driving Tests. I have excluded lockdown years where less than half a million Tests were conducted, because by law no Tests or lessons could take place. The DVSA have not, as that is the only year they have beaten.

28 Apr 2024
DVSA wrongly blames Learners for what they should be doing; booking Tests
The DVSA's latest response letters states 'customer behaviour' is as fault for waiting times. The Learners are doing what they should be doing; booking Practical Tests. The DVSA has still failed to understand that their basic remit is to provide Practical Driving Tests to everyone that wants one. DVSA targets state in service 1 areas (busy places, like Reading) no candidate should have to travel more than 7 miles for a Driving Test or wait more than 6 weeks. They have spectacularly failed.

27 Apr 2024
Reading Driving Practical Test Centre to be turned into flats in 2024
The Government Planning Inspector has overruled the County Council and granted planning permission to turn the Reading Practical Driving Test Centre into flats in 2024. https://planning.reading.gov.uk/fastweb_PL/detail.asp?AltRef=220258 In the middle of the Examiner recruitment crisis, this news further jeopardises the provision of Local Practical Driving Tests. Please write to your local MPs and object.

19 Apr 2024
Learners who have lost jobs due to lack of Practical Tests on local radio
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0hlrd5y On the link go to 1.07.35 to hear more about Learners losing out of job opportunities because of Lack of Driving Practical Tests

13 Apr 2024
Driving Examiners skills not valued by the DVSA, creating Practical Test crisis
When asked about the technical allowance that Examiners use to be paid, and is still paid to MOT Testers, Ms. Loveday, head of the DVSA has stated that: "There is no technical knowledge, qualification or experience required for a driving examiner role, so it does not meet the criteria for a technical allowance". Driving Examiners do an incredible job, and the lack of value being placed on their role has directly lead to lack of Examiners, and lack of Practical Driving Tests.

26 Mar 2024
DVSA in UK turning away £200 million pounds in Practical Test Fees
This year 5 million learners will be trying for 1.8 million UK Practical Test slots. The 3.2 million that cannot get a Practical Test, at £62 a Test, equates to £200,000,000 in Practical Test fees to fund the whole system, that the DVSA are losing but not providing their basic remit. https://www.driving.org/new-report-reveals-that-5m-learner-drivers-are-fighting-for-1-8m-driving-test-slots-in-2024/

22 Mar 2024
Reading Practical Test Centre has lost another Examiner
Reading Practical Test Centre has sadly lost yet another Examiner, with Colin’s retirement. Reading now only has two Examiners and is down 23500 Tests a year, as this site needs sixteen Examiners. Many, many other sites are in exactly the same position. The DVSA’s denial of the fundamental problem; the ‘Examiner recruitment crisis’ is a barrier to getting the problem fixed.

20 Feb 2024
Never-ending backlog predicted for Practical Driving Tests
Never-ending backlog predicted as 5m learner drivers fight for 1.8m driving test slots in 2024. Please see full article here: - https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/driving-test/362346/never-ending-backlog-predicted-5m-learner-drivers-fight-18m-driving-test-slots?BRAND_CODE=AEX&NEWSLETTER_ID=AEX_STD&utm_source=autoexpress_daily_newsletter&utm_campaign=autoexpress_daily_newsletter_20240219&refid=EB05A051105310904B3F5566CFC9009E&utm_medium=email

3 Dec 2023
Waiting times for Practical Driving Tests have officially increased
https://www.intelligentinstructor.co.uk/slow-progress/

19 Nov 2023
Another Berkshire Resident travels 100 miles for a Practical Test
https://metro.co.uk/2023/11/06/woman-drove-1000-miles-to-scotland-and-back-to-pass-her-driving-test-19782911/amp/

12 Nov 2023
Losing 15,000 Reading Practical Driving Tests
In 2019 Reading Practical Test Centre conducted 19,000 Practical Tests in 2023 Reading Practical Test Centre will have conducted 7,000 Practical Tests in 2024 Reading Practical Test Centre is predicted to conduct 4,000 Practical Tests There is not enough Examiners to meet demand.

29 Oct 2023
More Practical Driving Test Centres have no Test Dates
On 2nd December 2022 the DVSAs joint NASP press release stated that 5 Practical Driving Test Centres had a wait list of 24 weeks, which means that there is no Tests on the system at all. The latest DVSA statistics states 104 Practical Driving Test Centre 16th October 2023 had a wait list of 24 weeks, which means that there is no Tests on the system at all.

17 Oct 2023
Practical Test travel has made the local news and 'Rip off Britain'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43zEoBJq2bk This link shows learners going from Reading to Wales to get a Test on the news https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001rbhq/rip-off-britain-series-15-22-black-market-driving-tests This link shows the black market in Practical Tests because of the DVSA's failure to sort out Practical Test Demand.

12 Oct 2023
Practical Tests, not more disingenuous information.
The DVSA press release counts the number of new Examiners by including everyone who shown an interest in the advert. Not including those that actually started, or left. They should have published overall Examiner numbers, proving in many areas Examiner numbers declining despite increasing demand. The DVSA are having Managers temporarily carry out Practical Tests. 150,000 Test is 3 Practical Tests per site a day. Local Examiner’s are leaving, are overall taking far more Tests out of the system.

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Increase number of Practical Driving Tests by retaining DVSA staff

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