To combat the long waiting times for driving tests, MPs have heard a new proposal that would make your driving test free – if you passed on the first attempt.
However, if you fail, the price of subsequent tests would rise.
Long waits
It’s a novel concept put forward by Labour MP Alex Mayer who told the Commons that it was “utterly ridiculous” that her constituents are having to wait up to nine months for a driving test.
The MP for Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard expressed concern about learner drivers choosing to book their test even if they’re not ready: “It is cheaper sometimes to book that driving test time than it is to book a couple of lessons – and that cannot be right,” Mayer explained.
Cost neutral
Mayer believes that her approach would free up slots because only people who thought they were truly ready would book the test. To encourage readiness, the cost of the first free driving test would be offset “by putting up the charges for everyone who fails again and again,” she explains.
However, Mayer did confess that such an innovative approach wouldn’t have worked for her as she’d failed her own driving test five times before getting a pass.
“If you pass your driving test, you get a refund, so that would encourage everybody to only go for it when they really thought that they were going to pass it.”
Alex Mayer, MP for Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard
Big problem
Whether Mayer’s idea moves beyond the Commons and into law, something needs to be done to address the waiting times learners are experiencing.
Figures show that a record 603,352 learners are waiting to take their test, compared to 521,190 last year. While the government says it aims to deal with the backlog by summer 2026 by providing a minimum of 10,000 extra tests every month, so severe is the problem that perhaps new approaches should be considered.
The Commons Transport Committee’s Ruth Cadbury described Mayer’s proposal as an “innovative suggestion” and one that should be noted by transport minister Mike Kane. Time will tell if he acts on it – meanwhile, learners are left waiting.
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Main image by No-longer-here from Pixabay