The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has implemented a significant rule change for car driving test bookings, placing the responsibility firmly on learners to make their own reservations. Under the new regulations, it is now illegal for third parties—including unofficial booking services, cancellation finder websites, and driving instructors—to book tests on behalf of someone else.
New Measures to Tackle Exploitation
Simon Lightwood, Labour Party Minister for Roads and Buses, stated: "This government inherited record waiting times and a huge backlog of learners waiting for tests, with the system seeing too many people paying over the odds to third-party touts. But we're taking action and seeing results, delivering almost 2 million tests over the past year, more than 158,000 extra tests since June 2025, and military driving examiners now on the ground helping boost capacity across the country."
He added: "These new rules put learners back in control by stopping others from snapping up tests and reselling them for profit, helping make the system fairer and ensuring tests go to the people who genuinely need them."
DVSA Chief Executive's Statement
Beverley Warmington, DVSA Chief Executive, commented: "Our priority is to stop learners being exploited by third parties, put them in control of their driving test and make the process fairer by clamping down on businesses that resell tests at inflated prices. These new measures help bring a halt to a system where the use of bots and third parties increases the amount some learners pay for a test and blocks test availability for many others. These measures will help free up appointments for genuine learners who are ready to take their test."
Warmington further noted: "We're determined to reduce waiting times further, building on the more than 158,000 additional tests delivered between June 2025 and March 2026—supported by driving examiner numbers at their highest level since 2018 and the recent deployment of military driving examiners who are already carrying out tests."
Official Fees and Additional Changes
Learners are reminded that they should only ever pay the official DVSA fee: £62 on weekdays and £75 on evenings, weekends, and bank holidays. The changes introduced today build on a previous reduction in the number of changes that can be made to a test from six to two, which came into force on 31 March 2026. These combined measures aim to create a fairer and more efficient system for all learner drivers.
