How driving test booking is changing for learner drivers

From 9 June there will be changes to how you book your driving test.

The changes are aimed at reducing long waiting lists of up to six months, and preventing slots from being bulk-bought by bots and firms who resell them to learner drivers at inflated prices.

Some changes have already come into effect. Since 12 May, only you will be able to book, change or swap your own driving test, not anyone else - including your driving instructor.

Under the old rules, instructors could book tests on behalf of their students, but this is now banned.

A BBC investigation in December found that some driving instructors were offered kickbacks of up to £250 a month to sell their official test-booking login details to touts, who used those details to book driving tests in bulk and sell them to learners on WhatsApp and Facebook, charging as much as £500 for tests.

Tests have a standard fee of £62 on weekdays and £75 on evenings, weekends and bank holidays.

Speak to your instructor to make sure you're ready to take the test, then get their reference number. You enter this when you book to make sure your instructor is available.

You can help someone you know book and manage their driving test, but they must be with you while you help them, and all confirmations must be set up to be sent to their email or phone number. If they don't have email, you can help them set up an account.