Driver and rider testing and instructor statistics: July to September 2024
Published 12 December 2024
Applies to England, Scotland and Wales
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/driver-and-rider-testing-and-instructor-statistics-april-to-september-2024/driver-and-rider-testing-and-instructor-statistics-july-to-september-2024
About this release
This statistical release is published by the Department for Transport (DfT), based on statistics produced by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), on the numbers and pass rates for driving and riding theory and practical tests conducted in Great Britain.
These are official statistics. For more information, see the background notes section in this release.
The driver and rider tests and instructors collection provides further detail of the key findings presented in this statistical release, including detailed data tables and operational data by test centre.
In response to previously announced short-term resourcing pressures, the original publication date for the Driver and Rider Testing Statistics, Great Britain: April to June 2024 had been postponed to December 2024.
Given the delay in publishing these data and the impending scheduled release of the subsequent July to September 2024 data, the Department has decided to publish both quarters of data, covering April to September, in this release. This is in order to meet its obligations under the Code of Practice for Statistics to publish data as soon as possible to prevent delay to users. This edition of Driver and Rider Testing Statistics therefore supersedes the April to June 2024 release however all data related to that period is published as normal in the tables accompanying this release.
In line with previous announcements regarding the future of this publication, this will be the last time these data are published by DfT. Subsequent reporting of these data will be picked up in an alternative format by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency who will assume responsibility for publishing numbers and pass rates for driving and riding theory and practical tests conducted and data on instructors in Great Britain, going forwards on a quarterly basis. The next publication of this data will be available in March 2025.
Coverage
Tests conducted by delegated examiners are excluded from these statistics.
Headline figures
Comparing tests in Great Britain in July to September 2024 (Quarter 2) with July to September 2023 (Quarter 2):
- 692,000 car theory tests were conducted, up 4%
- the car theory test pass rate was 45.7%, down 0.4 percentage points
- 449,000 car practical tests were conducted, up 4%
- the car practical test pass rate was 48.9%, unchanged
Cars (category B): overview
Theory
In July to September 2024 (Quarter 2), 692,000 car theory tests were conducted in Great Britain, an increase of 4% on July to September 2023 (Quarter 2). The total pass rate was 45.7%, with 48.1% of females passing compared to 43.9% of males. The total pass rate for July to September 2024 (Quarter 2) was down 0.4 percentage points from the same quarter of the previous year.
Table 1: Car theory tests by gender, Great Britain, July to September 2024 with July to September 2023 (DRT1201)
| Metric and time period | Total | Female | Male |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tests Conducted: Jul to Sep 2024 | 692,220 | 297,880 | 394,335 |
| Tests Passed: Jul to Sep 2024 | 316,481 | 143,280 | 173,199 |
| Pass Rate (%): Jul to Sep 2024 | 45.7% | 48.1% | 43.9% |
| Tests Conducted: Jul to Sep 2023 | 663,103 | 293,395 | 369,693 |
| Tests Passed: Jul to Sep 2023 | 305,758 | 140,902 | 164,845 |
| Pass Rate (%): Jul to Sep 2023 | 46.1% | 48.0% | 44.6% |
| Tests Conducted (%): Annual change | +4% | +2% | +7% |
| Tests Passed (%): Annual change | +4% | +2% | +5% |
| Pass Rate (percentage points): Annual change | -0.4 | +0.1 | -0.7 |
Total test figures may be higher than the sum of male and female tests in cases where a candidate’s gender has not been recorded as either male or female.
Figure 1: Car theory tests conducted and pass rates, Great Britain, quarterly, July to September 2014 (Quarter 2) onwards (DRT1101)
Figure 1 shows the number of car theory tests conducted and pass rate for each financial quarter since July to September 2014 (Quarter 2). July to September 2024 (Quarter 2) showed an increase in the number of tests conducted compared to January to March 2024 (Quarter 4) and April to June 2024 (Quarter 1). The pass rate has shown some variability across the previous quarters.
Practical
Statistics on car practical tests conducted in Great Britain are also published as a faster indicator to monitor transport activity on a timelier basis for topical issues relating to transport.
In July to September 2024 (Quarter 2), 449,000 car practical tests were conducted in Great Britain, an increase of 4% on July to September 2024 (Quarter 2). The total pass rate was 48.9%, with 47.9% of females passing compared to 49.8% of males. The total pass rate for July to September 2024 (Quarter 2) was unchanged from the same quarter of the previous year.
Table 2: Car practical tests by gender, Great Britain, July to September 2024 with July to September 2023 (DRT1201)
| Metric and time period | Total | Female | Male |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tests Conducted: Jul to Sep 2024 | 448,687 | 202,123 | 246,562 |
| Tests Passed: Jul to Sep 2024 | 219,516 | 96,826 | 122,688 |
| Pass Rate (%): Jul to Sep 2024 | 48.9% | 47.9% | 49.8% |
| Tests Conducted: Jul to Sep 2023 | 432,177 | 198,069 | 234,103 |
| Tests Passed: Jul to Sep 2023 | 211,294 | 94,533 | 116,759 |
| Pass Rate (%): Jul to Sep 2023 | 48.9% | 47.7% | 49.9% |
| Tests Conducted (%): Annual change | +4% | +2% | +5% |
| Tests Passed (%): Annual change | +4% | +2% | +5% |
| Pass Rate (percentage points): Annual change | 0.0 | +0.2 | -0.1 |
Total test figures may be higher than the sum of male and female tests in cases where a candidate’s gender has not been recorded as either male or female.
Figure 2: Car practical tests conducted and pass rates, Great Britain, quarterly, July to September 2014 (Quarter 2) onwards (DRT1101)
Figure 2 shows the number of car practical tests conducted and the pass rate for each financial quarter since July to September 2014 (Quarter 2). The number of tests conducted returned to its usual levels in July to September 2024 after the large rise between October 2023 and March 2024.
The large rise in tests conducted in October 2023 to March 2024 (Quarters 3 and 4) can largely be attributed to efforts by DVSA to further reduce driving test waiting times. This has seen DVSA suspending non-testing duties for its staff who are qualified to conduct driving tests to maximise the number of examiners available to conduct tests. This led to a rapid up-lift in the number of tests conducted in those quarters.
Background notes
About these figures
The statistics in the driver and rider testing and instructor statistics series are derived by Department for Transport statisticians from extracts of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) administrative database.
For further information about the data used in this release, please see our guidance page.
In this release, numbers may not add up to totals and percentages may not add up to 100% due to rounding.
Test categories included
Practical test categories in the release are:
- B (car)
- A, A1 and A2 (motorcycles)
- C1 (medium sized vehicles)
- C1E (medium-sized vehicles with a trailer)
- C (large vehicles)
- CE (large vehicles with a trailer)
- D1 (minibuses)
- D1E (minibuses with a trailer)
- D (buses)
- DE (buses with a trailer)
Differences between vocational and CPC tests
LGV and PCV practical vocational test figures are always higher than the corresponding CPC practical test figure, as CPC tests are only required to drive these vehicles professionally. Non-commercial use of these vehicles might include, for example, driving a horse box.
Publication of monthly data
Some statistics on tests conducted in Great Britain are also published as faster indicators to monitor transport activity on a timelier basis for topical issues relating to transport.
The test types currently included are:
- LGV practical on-road
- Car practical (including forward bookings)
Official Statistics
These statistics are official statistics. They comply with the standards of trustworthiness, quality, and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics.
Details of ministers and officials who receive pre-release access to these statistics up to 24 hours before release can be found in the pre-release access list.
Next release
Driving and rider testing statistics are published 4 times a year. Future update schedules can be accessed via the DfT statistical publications schedule.
In line with previous announcements regarding the future of this publication, this will be the last time these data are published by DfT. Subsequent reporting of these data will be picked up in an alternative format by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency who will assume responsibility for publishing numbers and pass rates for driving and riding theory and practical tests conducted and data on instructors in Great Britain, going forwards on a quarterly basis. The next publication of this data will be available in March 2025.
For further information about the data used in this release, please see our notes and definitions.
To hear more about the Department for Transport’s statistical publications as they are released, follow us on X at DfTstats.
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