Overview
- The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency reports average waits of around 20 weeks to secure a practical driving test booking, with only small improvement from July.
- The average wait between booking and taking the test remains about 11.1 weeks, a figure that helps explain differences between headline booking waits and the date-of-test delay.
- DVSA delivered a record 2.13 million practical tests in the 12 months to August 2026 and says there are roughly 50,000 more test slots available now than a year earlier.
- New booking rules bar instructors and third parties from managing bookings, limit candidates to three nearest test centres and cap swaps to stop automated slot-hoarding and resale.
- Following advice from the National Audit Office, DVSA has committed to publish more granular data showing how many learners wait under seven weeks and over 24 weeks so candidates can see where pressure is worst.