UK driving-test backlog unlikely to clear before 2027 as DVSA appoints new chief executive

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has appointed Beverley Warmington as its new chief executive to tackle Britain’s driving-test backlog, a crisis the agency says will take about two years to clear. The move comes as the National Audit Office (NAO) warned that the DVSA will not hit its target of reducing average test waiting times to seven weeks by the end of 2024, with the tally of learners waiting to take a test continuing to swell.

The backlog is currently measured in the hundreds of thousands. Latest figures show more than 650,000 learners are waiting to sit a driving test. The NAO notes that 1.1 million tests could not be carried out in the 2020/21 financial year because of coronavirus restrictions, and an estimated 360,000 of those have still not been booked. In September, the national average wait stood at about 22 weeks, far above the pre-pandemic level of roughly five weeks in February 2020. The agency had aimed to bring waits down to seven weeks, but that ambition has been pushed back to the end of 2027 upon review.

The NAO attributes part of the problem to inadequate recruitment of examiners, which has constrained the number of new test slots that could be opened. Only 83 more examiners have been recruited since February 2021, far short of the target of 400, despite 19 recruitment drives. The watchdog highlighted that long waiting times have driven some learners to pay third parties up to £500 to secure a test, a trend described as exploitative by the NAO.

Warmington, who takes over from departing chief executive Loveday Ryder on January 5, arrives with nearly two decades of public-service leadership. The government notes she has overseen large workforces and transformed service delivery in prior roles, including a recent stint as Area Director for London, Essex and Eastern England at the Department for Work and Pensions. Her appointment places her in charge of delivering the government’s seven-point plan announced in December 2024 to reduce driving-test waiting times and reform the booking system.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said Warmington brings “operational leadership experience” and confidence she will “grip the driving test backlog and robustly oversee the reforms needed to ensure learners can get on the road when they are truly ready and safe to do so.” She succeeds as the DVSA also implements the government’s broader measures to tackle the backlog, including mobilising military driving examiners to conduct civilian tests. Under the arrangement, service personnel will be eligible to test cars and certain heavy vehicles one day per week for 12 months, a move officials say will add about 6,500 tests per year at high-demand centres near MOD bases or home locations, though officials caution this will cover only a small fraction of the overall backlog.

The plan also includes reforms to curb slot resales and limit test moves and swaps. Learners will be able to book tests only for certain centres near their original booking and will be restricted to a maximum of two changes to test details, moves, or locations. Examiners have been given incentives like overtime pay, and the DVSA says almost 75,000 more tests were carried out between June and November 2025 compared with the previous year as a result of those incentives.

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said the current system is not working satisfactorily, with long waits and the exploitation of learners by slot resellers. The NAO urged the DVSA and the Department for Transport (DfT) to ensure there are sufficient measures to meet demand and to boost the examiner workforce. A DfT spokesperson emphasized that the government inherited a “frustrating system” with learners in limbo and pledged decisive action, including military examiners and restrictions on test moves from Spring 2026 onward. The department also highlighted ongoing efforts to upgrade the online booking system and to set clearer targets for examiner recruitment as part of the broader reforms.

The backlog’s effects extend beyond individual learners. In industry commentary, driving schools have underscored the economic impact of delayed tests on income streams and broader workforce readiness. Advocates for further reforms note that while the Army-examiner plan provides an additional supply of testing capacity, it is not a complete solution to the persistent demand pressures stemming from decades of underinvestment and the post-pandemic testing rebound. The DVSA says it is pursuing a coordinated program to restore a fit-for-purpose driving-test service, with Warmington positioned as the central figure to drive the operational changes, monitor progress, and tighten delivery across England, Scotland and Wales.