How to book a theory driving test, UK? Drawn a total blank!

[LimitIsUp]

Having waited 11 weeks for the DVLA to produce ds' provisional driving licence, he has now attempted to book a theory test. He said he couldn't find any dates and times to book, there was diddly squat. I looked with him and despite checking 8 different test centres (some of them 30 miles away) there was nothing to book and no dates beyond November.

Have recently been through something similar with dd for her practical driving test we finally met with some success after downloading the Testi app which gives real time push notifications of cancelled slots - but I don't think Testi works for theory tests. Has anyone found an app for theory tests?

The other thing I seem to remember is that for the practical test you could only see slots for a few months ahead (usually none available) and then suddenly, often on the same day each week usually, the test centres would release the next tranche of practical driving test slots for another week. I am assuming it might be the same for theory tests since you can't look beyond November. Does anyone know when typically the next tranche of theory test slots (which would now be December) are released?

If you have secured a theory test recently, how on earth did you manage?

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I booked one yesterday for Tuesday. There were loads of slots available. I’m in London which I’m sure makes a difference.

I was in the same position waiting since March for a driving license! I was advised to just keep checking the theory test website as slots are released quite regularly. It's a pain, because you have to put in so much information before you get to the test bit, but it worked for me. I tried in the morning and there was nothing, tried later that day and there were slots. Good luck!

My DD booked one last week for August, which is earlier than she would have liked, as she’s only just had her first lesson. There seemed to be a bit of a gap for slots after that. We’re in London.

South Wales here, booked a few weeks ago for early August.

My DP is an instructor was telling me that 3 of the local theory centres are closing which leaves us quite far from the nearest one for his students apparently DVLA is saving money. We are North West.

@Jujujuly

I booked one yesterday for Tuesday. There were loads of slots available. I’m in London which I’m sure makes a difference.

We are an hour by train from London - I think we might just book a London test. Thanks for that.

I am on the South coast - we looked a Salisbury, Southampton, Winchester, Bournemouth, Andover, Blandford Forum and even the IoW!

@bertdynamite

I was in the same position waiting since March for a driving license! I was advised to just keep checking the theory test website as slots are released quite regularly. It's a pain, because you have to put in so much information before you get to the test bit, but it worked for me. I tried in the morning and there was nothing, tried later that day and there were slots. Good luck!

Thanks bertdynamite

@LimitIsUp mine is booked at one of the Mile End test centres - there seemed to be about 4 there. Good luck!

Ds booked his about a week in advance (but it could have been earlier, he said there were loads of slots) about a month ago.
Cambridge.

Check the website every day. Cancellations come up all the time. And be prepared to travel. My DD and several of her friends have travelled from Edinburgh to various centres in England to get it done!

You can look for further away places where you can take them. My DD's bf booked his this week in a town 30 miles away not his local town, for 3 weeks time.

@cocopops

Check the website every day. Cancellations come up all the time. And be prepared to travel. My DD and several of her friends have travelled from Edinburgh to various centres in England to get it done!

We are prepared to travel - but your dd having to travel to England, mad innit? We are going to Cardiff for a city break in a few weeks, maybe I should check there...and Scarborough when we visit the grandparents

We are in Scotland and when my DS looked for his theory test the nearest he could get was Carlisle!!! A 270 mile round trip. Thankfully he passed it

I could have booked the 20 July in Driffield a minute ago, but it doesn't coincide with when we are in North Yorkshire, and a 560 mile round trip seems ambitious

Wow user - you went for it then! Glad he passed

Central Scotland here - I’ve heard of friends children going to Ayr, Carlisle, Aberdeen and even as far as York (nice day out🤣).

I'm gobsmacked.

I am beginning to think that the current chronic delays in issuing provisional driving licences whilst not necessarily deliberate, are being left as they are, to take the heat out of the system (since you can't book without a provisional licence)

Yes we got one 100 miles from home at 8am so it involved a long drive after work and an overnight stay in a travel lodge.

Sadly there are massive delays and because the DVLA won't extend those passed before the pandemic there are now lots of people having to book a second test as they only last two years. It's taking an age to be able to restart driving lessons in some areas and driving tests are delayed by months in many places.

Dd passed hers in February 2020. Her driving test was cancelled in March 2020 and her second one was cancelled on autumn 2020. As she went to university it's taken months to sort out a new driving instructor as all are heavily booked up and then lockdowns prevented them. She is finally restarting lessons in her university town this summer as it's the first one she's managed to get to set a starting date since before Christmas. She needs lessons to learn the new routes etc in the new area as it's very different to here (though hopefully shouldn't be as tricky as city driving in a hilly city with teams etc.) so hopefully she can rebook a test again soon - hopefully she'll get a date before February 2022 or she will have to rejoin the queue for a new theory test too!

She isn't alone either. A number of her friends have had similar issues and those who also then moved to university mid pandemic have been finding it very tricky to even get a place with new instructors let alone rebook a test anywhere.

We know a number of people having to rebook theory tests making the demand much higher than normal.