Driving tests?

[theferry]

I’m posting here as we’re based in NE Scotland. Does anyone have advice on booking driving tests? We were told that they’re released at 6am on Mondays, but there’s been nothing for months. I’m wondering if they’ve changed the routine? Tried booking for other local test centres but theyre just as bad. I know new rules have come in that means you can’t use the apps that find cancellations for you.

It’s pretty much impossible to book a driving test at the moment. You’re not doing anything wrong. They just don’t exist. When those with the experience to be a driving inspector can earn far more being an instructor, they choose the latter. Until the government increases the wages of inspectors nothing is going to change.

other resources @theferry

Late Night Sweeps: Many system updates and cancellations occur late in the evening. Checking the official portal between 10:00 PM and 11:30 PM often yields results.
Cancellation Apps: Apps like Testi, Drivebot, or Driving Test Cancellations scan the DVSA system and alert you the second a slot opens up

Rural Test Centres: The North East has several centres with much shorter waiting lists and strong pass rates. Consider broadening your search to nearby centres with historically high pass rates, such as Ballater (75.8% pass rate), Montrose (68.8%), or Fraserburgh (59%).

@Selkie33 hiw did you find the percentage pass rates?

it was a generic AI response @theferry

You could also look here though

I’ve found that the pass rate for my centre is 70%, which is interesting.

I'm with you on this. Been trying every Monday 6am for a month now to get a test for my DS1. Always behind tens of thousands of people in the queue, no dates whatsoever available by my turn.

Today I got up at 5.15am determined to get one. I started trying to get in the queue then, refreshing every now and then, straight away. Kept getting the 'come back at 6am' page. I picked up the refreshing from 5.40am. I got blocked.

Tried on my phone - got in the queue, 1,200th-ish. Thought I'd nailed it. But the queue started counting down early and went to the 'come back at 6am page'. I tried refreshing that page at 6am and I was... blocked.

Tried again on another web browser but by now it's 6.01am - 13,000th in the queue. My second worst. Of course, no test dates when I finally got to the front of the queue. Just like every other time.

I am just despairing of this now. I don't mind if it's 6 months away, it's the frustration of not being able to book anything at all.

I feel your pain. Can we all take the time to acknowledge how utterly farcical this is? Driving is one of life’s basic skills. It’s vital for many jobs. The government is apparently trying to encourage young people into working and yet cannot fix this one exceedingly basic issue. It’s infuriating. Young people just want to launch their adult lives. This is one more way the government is preventing them from doing so and they seem determined to do absolutely nothing whatsoever to fix the situation. They’ve removed the bots to make it a fair playing field for those scrabbling around to get a test slot, but aren’t doing anything to increase the number of test slots, and that’s the issue.

It's awful. My son had to, due to no fault of his own cancel his test last minute last week. We did get another, on Monday by logging in at 6, but not until
november.

when logging in before 6, I've not refreshed the screen at 6, it just has taken me straight in.

now need to try and check the system regularly for a cancellation

The situation has got progressively worse over the years since Covid. My eldest was 17 in March 2020, the issues for him were around sitting the theory because of social distancing but once he passed that, we managed to get a test, and a cancellation when he failed, fairly quickly at our preferred centre.

DD was 17 in 2022, getting a theory was OK by then but a test was a lot harder but we used the Testi app and managed to get one.

DS2 was 17 in 2025, bloody nightmare. Again, theory OK and he passed a week after his birthday, we could not get a slot for a test for weeks and when we did, it was in rush hour, in the middle of winter, at the busiest test centre in the city but that was OK because judging by DD's experience we thought we'd be able to change it. No chance. Nothing on Testi, nothing on the website. So he ended up sitting it anyway and luckily passed.

It is a combination of factors. The government not investing in the IT fixes to stop people/resellers booking miultiple slots. It would be so easy to code the site so you need a theory test pass certificate number to book a slot, and you can only book one slot with that number. No allowing instructors or other people to book slots to resell. I think they have started to address this but it is far from resolved. Also the salary thing, qualified people would far prefer to be self-employed as driving instructors rather than employed as testers. Raising their salaries would mean paying more for a test but that's probably better than paying out for so many more lessons while you wait.

Also pass rates - in the two nearest centres to me (Shieldhall and Anniesland) the pass rate is around 40%. Bishopbriggs a bit further and is 50%. So lots of people failing and needing to book other tests. However I don't think that's changed so much, people have always failed driving tests and needed to rebook.

Do you mean that when you get the 'come back at 6am' message you just wait? No refreshing to look for the queue? I'm so confused. I thought I had to keep going back in for when they started the queue.

I thought changes had come in a few weeks ago to make it easier.

The changes make it harder for bots to swipe any available tests and sell them to the highest bidder, but they haven’t undressed the number of test slots, and the issue is that there is far too much demand for the few test slots. We need more test slots.

We got into the queue at 5.45 this morning and managed to get a test for mid November. There were about 5 dates/times available. Such a relief. Just need to look for a cancellation now.

I didn't need to refresh. It took me in when it was 6. I think if you refresh it puts you to the back of the queue

Thank you tigger1001. I thought I needed to join that queue thing and kept refreshing. Next Monday I'll try not refreshing. What time did you access the website?

I've had to do it a few times. Joined around 5.45 the last time I think.

good luck. It's a nightmare

Well, something has radically changed. There must have been a hundred new tests come through on Testi this week. We’ve got a date for mid July.

Be careful - people have had their tests cancelled if using cancellation apps

I thought part of the changes were to ban testi etc booking tests. This is surely a scam?

Testi doesn't sell slots. It monitors the DVLA site and tells you when something is available at the centres you've told it to look for.

Testi is specifically mentioned from dvsa - if found with an account with them you face getting your test cancelled .

the dvsa say even apps which search for tests but you book yourself are no longer allowed

Another Monday, another fail to get a driving test.

Went on the website on my laptop using broadband at 5.15am to the 'back at 6am screen', didn't do anything, no renewing, hoping it would go straight onto the site at 6am. Nope. The screen refreshed itself at 5.50am and put me in a queue with over 10,000 infront of me. Ridiculous. Of course, by the time it was my turn at about 6.30am there were no tests again.

I also tried on my phone. I've used it maybe 3 times before to check for cancellations. Anyway, I got in the queue on there at 5.45am. Using the mobile signal not broadband. I was about 1,200 in the queue. Great I thought. But the queue counted down quickly and by 5.55 I was back on the 'back at 6am' screen. But I patiently waited, and at just after 6am I refreshed the screen as nothing had happened. And......... Error 15. I was blocked. No idea why. No VPN, barely used it, on a different connection to the laptop. By the time it let me back in there were no tests left.

So another week of getting up at stupid o'clock and still no test date. This is insane.

When DS passed his theory we got home and I tried logging on to see what was available and of course there was nothing for miles. Kept refreshing that evening and did the same the following morning. I don’t know how but a test came up the following morning for our local test centre. It was 5 months later but at least we managed to get one. It must have been a cancellation and we got lucky. If you can I would see if you can do this, you might get lucky like we did.

@alwayswantchocolate Also up at 5.50 today - 8911 in the queue, got in at 6.22 - no tests at any of 4 nearest centres.

Looked in my old home town - tests all over available, but you can no longer book and swap far to near.

So it does seem to be regional.

Feeling despair right now about it all.