At this time of year, there is often a great deal of media attention about the non-availability of driving tests. People begin to speculate why the situation is the way it is. The summer months are notorious for creating higher demand in driver training – it is when people naturally want to learn to drive. Coupled with that higher demand, driving examiners like to go on holiday too – of course they do, we all do! So you have a higher demand and lower capacity. But in this blog, let us guide you about the driving test booking process in general terms.
It is fair to say that the booking system that is run by and regulated by the DVSA has been creaking under the pressure of demand for several years now. There were people complaining about the summer delays in finding test slots even before Covid. And of course, Covid only created a further backlog because testing was paused. So the fact is, in terms of historical context, it has not been running smoothly for a very long time. Of course, whenever someone wants to learn to drive, their awareness is raised of this issue for the first time, it is all new for them, so they tend to think it is an issue that has only just started; the fact is, it has been around a while – they just were not needing to learn to drive in the previous years.
What issue does this cause? Naturally, people want to have a test booked up early, because frankly, they have no other choice of booking a practical driving test. So they tend to get their theory test passed, that then enables them to book up a practical driving test. And so we have people booking in for driving tests well before they are ready to take a test, literally, several months before. If everything was running as it should, when a pupil is at, or near the required standard, they would be able to book a test aligned to their timing needs. But instead, we have people booking up practical tests 4-6 months in advance, sometimes, even before they have started to take practical driving training. And you can hardly blame them, because if they were to delay the booking, it would mean once they get near to the desired standard of driving, they would then suffer a lengthy delay waiting for a test slot. It is a far from ideal situation.
The real issue comes with the fact that people are taking the test when really, they aren’t at a sufficiently good standard to pass it. And this is a historical problem that is not new at all. The national average pass rate in the UK has always been less than 50%, less than the flip of a coin, and that inevitably means that all those people who failed, then have to burden the system yet again, with another attempt. So truly knowing when the right time to go to test is beneficial to everyone – and here at BIG TOM, we are very good at accurately assessing this.
The reason why this has always been an issue is quite natural. The ‘prize’ of getting the full licence is an incredibly sought after goal, it changes people’s lives in a very positive way. As such, people get ‘blinded’ or distracted from thinking about driving ability, and instead just tend to focus on getting a driving test as soon as possible. It has always been this way, and despite the DVSA creating the “Ready to Pass?” campaign a long time ago, the pass rate is still less than 50%
The answer to this problem is yes, book a test early by all means but don’t think of that test date like an exam where you then just cram at the last minute before the test. That tactic may work in academia, but it most certainly will not work on driving tests. Instead, plan your training thoroughly, give yourself some room for dealing with obstacles to the learning process. There very often are things that crop up in the learning path, that can delay progress – this is a natural consequence of our busy lives and needs to be designed into the schedule. Without that safety valve, should something crop up that creates a temporary blip in learning, that test date continues to get closer and before you know it, you are in a very uncomfortable situation where deep down you know you are not ready, you don’t even feel confident, but you are naturally extremely unwilling to change or postpone your test date as you know it will mean a delay of several months.
With the help of this blog, you can start to put some context around the issue of driving test slot availability and therefore start planning a training programme that takes it into account. There really is a reason why the pass rate is less than 50%, it is only you coming into this for the first time that isn’t aware of the fact; the smart thing to do is not deny it and adapt your plans to ensure you pass first time.
Just because you are booking a driving test say 4-6 months in advance, try not to delay your driving training. You need plenty of practice to get to the required standard and it does not make for successful outcomes when people leave it all to the last few days prior to the test.
