Driving examiner strike: March 2023
Some driving tests might be affected by strike action at times during March 2023.
Some driving examiners who are members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union are planning to take strike action at times during March 2023.
The strike action is part of national industrial action by the PCS union over pay, pensions, jobs and redundancy terms.
There is different guidance about vehicle tester and traffic examiner strikes in March 2023.
What types of tests might be affected
The strike action might affect:
- car driving tests
- motorcycle tests
- lorry, bus, coach and minibus driving tests (these are known as vocational tests)
- tractor or specialist vehicle driving tests
- approved driving instructor (ADI) part 2 (driving ability) or part 3 (instructional ability) tests
- ADI standards checks
- moped and motorcycle compulsory basic training (CBT) checks - but not the training courses themselves
The strike action will not affect theory tests.
Driving tests with private test providers
Your test will not be affected by the strike action if you’re taking it with a private test provider. This includes some:
- Driver Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) part 3a (off-road exercise) tests
- Driver CPC part 4 (practical demonstration) tests
When the strikes will be held
The strikes will affect driving test centres in different parts of Great Britain at different times.
| Dates | Areas affected |
|---|---|
| Monday 6 March and Tuesday 7 March | London and south-east England |
| Thursday 9 March and Friday 10 March | South-west England and Wales |
| Wednesday 15 March | All areas of Great Britain |
| Monday 20 March and Tuesday 21 March | East of England, East Midlands, West Midlands and parts of London |
| Thursday 23 March and Friday 24 March | North-west England and Yorkshire and the Humber |
| Monday 27 March and Tuesday 28 March | North-east England and Scotland |
Check which driving test centres are affected
The PCS union has told DVSA the strike action will affect driving examiners employed at the driving test centres listed on this page.
Tests might also be affected at other driving test centres that are not listed. DVSA will not know this until the day of the strike action.
London and south-east England
These areas include these test centres:
Ashford (Kent), Aylesbury, Banbury, Basingstoke, Belvedere (London), Bletchley, Burgess Hill, Canterbury, Chertsey (London), Chichester, Chingford (London), Crawley, Eastbourne, Enfield (Brancroft Way), Enfield (Innova Business Park), Erith (London), Farnborough, Folkestone, Gillingham, Gillingham LGV, Greenford (London), Greenham, Guildford, Hastings (Ore), Hendon (London), Herne Bay, Hither Green (London), Isleworth (Fleming Way), Lancing, Lee On The Solent, Maidstone, Mill Hill (London), Mitcham (London), Morden (London), Newbury (Hambridge Lane), Newport (Isle Of Wight), Not found, Oxford (Cowley), Pinner (London), Portsmouth, Reading, Redhill Aerodrome, Sevenoaks, Sidcup (London), Slough (London), Southall (London), Southampton (Maybush), Southampton LGV, Tolworth (London), Tottenham, Tunbridge Wells, Uxbridge (London), Wanstead (London), West Wickham (London), Winchester, Wood Green (London), and Yeading (London).
Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.
South-west England and Wales
These areas include these test centres:
Abergavenny, Aberystwyth (Park Avenue), Bangor, Barnstaple, Bodmin, Bridgend, Bristol (Avonmouth), Bristol (Kingswood), Caernarfon LGV, Camborne, Cardiff (Llanishen), Cardigan, Carmarthen, Cheltenham, Chippenham, Dorchester, Exeter, Exeter LGV, Gloucester, Launceston, Llanelli, Llantrisant, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouth, Newport (Gwent), Newton Abbot, Newtown, Pembroke Dock, Plymouth, Plymouth LGV, Poole, Rhyl, Swansea, Swindon, Swindon LGV, Taunton, Weston-Super-Mare, Wrexham, Wrexham LGV, and Yeovil.
Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.
East of England, East Midlands, West Midlands and parts of London
These areas include these test centres:
Ashfield, Barking (Tanner Street), Barnet (London), Basildon, Birmingham (Garretts Green), Birmingham (Kings Heath), Birmingham (Kingstanding), Birmingham (Shirley), Birmingham (South Yardley), Birmingham (Sutton Coldfield), Bishops Stortford, Borehamwood (London), Boston, Brentwood (London), Burton on Trent, Bury St Edmunds, Buxton, Cambridge (Brookmount Court), Chelmsford (Hanbury Road), Chesterfield, Colchester, Coventry, Derby (Alvaston), Dudley, Featherstone, Goodmayes (London), Grantham (Somerby), Hinckley, Hornchurch (London), Ipswich, Kettering, Kings Lynn, Leicester (Cannock Street), Leicester (Wigston), Leighton Buzzard (Stanbridge Road), Letchworth, Lichfield, Lincoln, Loughborough, Loughton (London), Lowestoft (Mobbs Way), Ludlow, Northampton, Norwich (Jupiter Road), Norwich (Peachman Way), Nottingham (Chilwell), Nottingham (Colwick ), Peterborough, Peterborough LGV, Redditch, Rugby, Shrewsbury, Southend-on-Sea, St Albans, Stafford, Stevenage, Stoke on Trent (Cobridge), Stoke on Trent (Newcastle under Lyme), Telford, Tilbury, Warwick (Wedgenock House), Watford, Watnall, Wednesbury, Weedon LGV, Wolverhampton, Worcester, and Worksop.
Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.
North-west England and Yorkshire and the Humber
These areas include these test centres:
Atherton (Manchester), Barnsley, Beverley LGV, Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Bolton (Manchester), Bradford (Heaton), Bradford (Thornbury), Bredbury (Manchester), Bridlington, Bury (Manchester), Carlisle, Carlisle LGV (Cars), Chadderton, Cheetham Hill (Manchester), Chester, Chorley, Crewe, Doncaster, Grimsby Coldwater, Halifax, Heckmondwike, Heysham, Horsforth, Huddersfield, Hull, Kendal (Oxenholme Road), Knaresborough, Leeds, Macclesfield, Nelson, Norris Green (Liverpool), Northallerton, Pontefract, Preston, Rochdale (Manchester), Rotherham, Sale (Manchester), Scarborough, Scunthorpe, Sheffield (Handsworth), Sheffield (Middlewood Road), Southport (Liverpool), Speke (Liverpool), St Helens (Liverpool), Steeton, Upton, Wakefield, Wallasey, Warrington, West Didsbury (Manchester), Widnes (Liverpool), Workington, and York.
Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.
North-east England and Scotland
These areas include these test centres:
Aberdeen North, Aberdeen South (Cove), Airdrie, Ayr, Bishopbriggs, Blyth, Darlington, Darlington LGV, Dumbarton, Dumfries, Dundee, Durham, Edinburgh (Currie), Edinburgh (Musselburgh), Elgin, Gateshead, Glasgow (Anniesland), Glasgow (Baillieston), Glasgow (Shieldhall), Gosforth, Grangemouth, Greenock, Hamilton, Hartlepool, Inverness (Longman Drive), Inverness (Seafield Road), Irvine, Kilmarnock LGV, Kirkcaldy, Livingston, Middlesbrough , Paisley, Perth (Arran Road), Stirling, and Sunderland.
Tests at other driving test centres in these areas might also be affected.
If you want to change your driving test date now
Not all examiners are PCS union members, and even if they are, they might choose not to go on strike.
However, you can change your test to another date if you want to.
You must give at least 3 clear working days’ notice to change your test date, or you’ll have to pay again.
What to do if you do not change your test
You should go to your driving test appointment as planned if it’s on the date of strike action, unless DVSA contacts you to tell you not to go.
DVSA will call you to tell you what to do if you’re taking an instructor test including:
- ADI part 2 (driving ability) tests
- ADI part 3 (instructional ability) tests
- ADI standards checks
You will lose your fee for the test if you do not go for your appointment, and you’ll have to rebook your test yourself.
If your driving test cannot go ahead
DVSA will automatically rebook your driving test for you if it cannot go ahead because of the strike action.
You’ll be sent the new details within 5 to 10 working days. You do not need to contact DVSA.
You’ll also be able to claim out-of-pocket expenses.
If your trainer booked your motorcycle or vocational driving test, DVSA will refund your trainer instead. Your trainer will need to book a new appointment for you.
How to claim out-of-pocket expenses
You can claim out-of-pocket expenses if your test is cancelled. You must have turned up for your test to be able to do this.
The application form and guidance tell you what you can claim for.
Claim out-of-pocket expenses for a cancelled driving test.
DVSA is sorry for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience.