Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s online booking platform's bot detection and mitigation systems on access to practical driving tests for learner drivers.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) will continue to review and improve the driving test booking system to make sure that learner drivers can book their test easily and efficiently.

Between 28 May and 23 July 2025, DVSA ran a public consultation on improving the rules for booking car driving tests. Views were sought from the driver training industry, learner drivers and other interested parties on changes which aim to prevent learner drivers from being exploited by those who resell tests at a higher price.

In line with the consultation principles, DVSA will aim to publish a summary of responses, including the next steps, which might include new legislation.

While the selling of tests for profit is not illegal, DVSA deploys enhanced bot protection to help stop automated systems from buying up tests unfairly, but these applications are constantly evolving and changing. DVSA continues looking for ways to ensure the safest and fairest way to book a driving test is for a legitimate candidate to use its services. DVSA has zero tolerance for those who exploit learner drivers and is committed to tackling the reselling of driving tests.