Only learner drivers will be able to book a driving test, with third parties banned from the DVSA booking site, following major changes set to be introduced by Labour.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has introduced the new measures to prevent bots from claiming test slots and reselling them at higher prices elsewhere.
It’s hoped that this measure to limit third parties from reselling slots will cut wait times, with the average waiting time for a test at 21.8 weeks at the end of June.
But the secretary confirmed she could no longer commit to reducing wait times to under seven weeks by summer 2026, the most recent deadline she had set.
Ms Alexander said: “We’re introducing a legislative change which will mean that only the driver themselves can book a test.
“We are going to be limiting the number of times that a driver can move or swap a test, and we will also limit the area that they can move a test to once they've booked it.”
Under the current rules, driving instructors can book tests on behalf of their students, but this will be banned as part of the changes.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) makes tests available each week but many are rapidly booked up by bots, who then resell them at inflated prices.
The test costs £62 for a weekday slot or £75 for evenings and weekends, but some third-party sellers are charging up to £500.
Data from September 2025 shows that almost 670,000 people are waiting for a test across the country, with the DVSA claiming that the backlog is a result of increased demand and learners booking tests much earlier.
Around 182,000 tests took place last month, a 9% increase from the same time last year.
Ms Alexander added: “We are giving driving examiners an extraordinary retention payment next year of £5,000, to be split between a payment in March and a payment in September.”
Ms Alexander also confirmed that the Government had recruited 316 additional driving examiners, but that this has resulted in a net gain of only 40 as other instructors have left.
Additionally, 36 Defence Driving Examiners from the Ministry of Defence will be brought into the DVSA to try to reduce the backlog.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: “What will really deter the touts and tackle the queues would be a return to the more reasonable pre-Covid waiting time for tests, which we hope the arrival of a platoon of military examiners alongside the new DVSA recruits will help deliver.”
© The Standard Ltd