Current driving check ready occasions as of September 2025 present that driving check availability at most centres is severely restricted, with waits stretching to round 4 to 6 months.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has a goal to cut back the nationwide common ready time for a driving check to seven weeks by December 2025 however present figures present that each one check centres in London at present have longer ready occasions than this.
Official stats present that the majority London check centres have the utmost potential ready time of 24 weeks.
There are at present 25 open check centres throughout London providing sensible driving checks – which all new drivers should go to acquire a licence, after first having handed a idea check.
But the place is the quickest in case you are raring to get behind the wheel?
Which driving centres have the shortest ready occasions?
For these desperate to go their driving check, having to attend months for a check is extremely irritating. Thankfully, knowledge reveals that there are main disparities in wait occasions, so that you would possibly have the ability to ebook your self a check quicker in a unique space.
At current, the bottom wait time is in Erith in South East London which has a wait time of round 11 weeks and a go price of 49 per cent.
Close behind that is Southall and Greenwood, which has a present wait time of round 12 weeks.
Next up is Hornchurch with 22 weeks, Enfield with 23 weeks after which all the others in London have a wait time of 24 weeks.
- Tottenham
- Wood Green
- Chingford
- Wanstead
- Goodmayes
- Barking
- Belvedere
- Sidcup
- Bromley
- West Wickham
- Mitcham
- Morden
- Tolworth
- Isleworth
- Yeading
- Uxbridge
- Pinner
- Hendon
- Mill Hill
- Barnet
Why are wait occasions for driving checks so lengthy?
There are a number of the reason why the wait occasions for driving checks are so lengthy. The pandemic prompted a backlog of individuals ready for checks. In 2022, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) carried out 1.8 million checks, which was 6 per cent greater than pre-pandemic ranges.
By the tip of May 2023, the DVSA had acquired 800,000 new bookings, indicating a 7 per cent improve in demand for driving checks in comparison with earlier than the COVID-19 pandemic.
Another issue for lengthy driving check wait occasions is the 2022 and 2023 strike motion by the Public and Commerical Services (PCS) Union over pay, pensions, jobs and redundancy phrases. Some driving examiners are members of PCS and took half within the strikes. It resulted in round 25,000 driving checks being canceled and rebooked.
The dwindling variety of driving instructors (ADIs) has additionally impacted driving check wait occasions. In 2023, there have been 39,195 ADIs on the DVSA’s register, equating to 1 ADI per each 1,627 Great Britain residents. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has struggled to recruit extra examiners, resulting in 113,000 canceled checks.
There can also be a restricted variety of driving check centres. There are solely 24 throughout the entire of London.
What is being completed to enhance wait occasions?
In December 2024, the federal government launched a seven-point plan to cut back ready occasions, which they’re nonetheless making an attempt to implement now.
Ideas for change embrace:
The DVSA intends to rent and practice 450 new driving examiners.
Improving the check reserving system
Another step shall be bettering the usability and effectivity of the check reserving system.
Stricter reserving situations
The DVSA can even introduce stricter phrases and situations for reserving driving checks in order that solely instructors or companies that make use of driving instructors will have the ability to ebook them.
The new guidelines additionally cease driving instructors and companies from utilizing a learner driver’s particulars to ebook a check that they don’t intend that driver to take.
Longer wait occasions in particular circumstances
The DVSA will contemplate growing the time sure people should wait to ebook one other check. This consists of learner drivers who’ve made a number of critical or harmful errors throughout their driving check, who bodily or verbally assaulted their driving examiner or who did not attend their driving check with out telling the DVSA.
Longer discover for reserving modifications or cancellation
From April 8, learner drivers might want to give ten full working days’ discover to vary or cancel their automotive driving check with out shedding their check charge to keep away from appointments going unused.
The DVSA can even contemplate altering how far forward driving checks may be booked (it’s at present 24 weeks).
Finally, the DVSA will encourage learner drivers to be higher ready for his or her check earlier than taking it. Research from DVSA reveals that round 23 per cent of learner drivers take their first driving check inside one month of beginning driving classes.
The DVSA hopes that these actions will assist present 1.95 million automotive driving checks between April 2024 and March 2025 and reduce the wait time to simply 7 weeks by December.
