The driving test booking system is an utter shambles isn't it?

[shrinkwrappt]

DS has been learning to drive for nearly a year and failed his driving test for the second time yesterday. The examiner told him he's a good driver, but he made one mistake that she couldn't overlook, so that's fair enough. He had been lucky to get that test slot - it was a cancellation from his instructor, and the first offered since his previous test in January (when he also failed for a single mistake, ironically one which stopped being a mistake when the Highway Code changed a week later). So he has been unlucky, and hopefully will pass next time. But next time is potentially a long way off. The only test he was able to book when we looked today is in mid-September, and 300 miles away near his grandparents house. So, fingers are crossed for an earlier cancellation closer to home. We were already signed up for the Testi app, which gives cancellation alerts, but found it useless - too many people chasing too few cancellations. Today I tried the DrivingTestCancellations4All app but they're so swamped that they have a waiting list. The DVSA really need to add capacity to the testing system, or their backlog will never be cleared.

My nearest driving test centre has closed, so that’s more of a backlog. My DD learned last year -she was 22- and used drivingtestgenie app to get a slot. My other DD is 24 and is learning to drive now. She has booked a random slot 250 miles away in October and is hoping to change it to our new nearest centre using an app.

Yeah I have seen it now, but my post that you were referring to was a couple of months ago, so way before the announcement, but I still think that the offering is poor public service which is, after all, what they are there for.

A lot of the problems at Swansea are down to historic poor management - furloughing people in Covid rather than getting them to do their job from home.

Ds had his theory test back in March 21 cancelled due to covid. It was booked for after lockdown ended but the dvla gave their furloughed staff 2 weeks extra off work to get ready to come back. Lockdown ending wasn’t a surprise, it was widely reported that everything would be opening up again but it didn’t occur to anyone at the dvla to say “be ready to come to work on x day because we are fully booked with theory tests. If lockdown continues then stay on furlough”. Two weeks of theory test at every test centre in the country cancelled for no good reason. Ds rebooked the next available date - July 21. When he went he was in a a building with a sign on the door saying theory tests had been cancelled that nobody had bothered to take down for 5 months and took his test in a huge room with 30+ pcs in it and one other candidate. I don’t know if the sign had put people off or they thought it was fine to cap the numbers at 2 for the 3 sittings they run a day. 6 people a day sitting the test, pass rate of 50%, only 15 people a week through the system. It’s appalling but also I guess those extra 2 weeks off didn’t make that much difference on a population level.

Yes trying to get my 16 disabled daughter a test and the earliest she can get is mid September. She needs the car to get anywhere.