wrans/answers2025-11-27 conversation_117
Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-11-27)

UK Parliament Hansard data: wrans/answers2025-11-27 conversation_117

Rupert Lowe:To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps her Department is taking with police forces to detect and prosecute organised fraud rings involved in impersonation during driving tests. \p Simon Lightwood: To ensure Great Britain’s roads remain among the safest in the world, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has robust measures in place to stop people using false identities when taking a driving test, to prevent illegitimate licences being issued.

At the start of the driving test, all driving examiners (DE) carry out thorough identification and documentation checks to satisfy themselves of the person’s identity, the validity of the driving licence and theory test pass certificate.

To make it harder for fraudsters to impersonate a candidate, DVSA has worked in partnership with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to give DEs access to an enlarged photograph of the candidate, as shown on the driving licence, to help the examiner decide if the person presenting for test is the correct candidate. If a candidate fails to satisfy the examiner that they have complied with the requirements, the examiner will, under legislation, refuse to take the test.

DVSA takes very seriously any allegations of fraudulent activity, including candidate impersonation. It has a dedicated Intelligence Threat Hub for the assessment of available information, prioritisation of investigations, and a dedicated counter fraud team to investigate such allegations.

Due to the nature of impersonation, there is not a high level at a single location, as an impersonator would be easily identified as such, if they attempted to take several tests at a single location. DVSA uses other data, such as details of the vehicle used by a suspected impersonator, to track and investigate attempts across the country.

The table below shows the number of intercepted impersonation attempts for driving practical tests from 1 October 2020 to 30 September 2025. Interceptions are where DVSA colleagues have challenged the impersonator and stopped the test or a licence has been revoked if evidence of impersonation comes to light later.

Please note, practical test impersonations were included in general impersonation figures until 2021, therefore DVSA has no individual figures for this category between 2018-2020.

Date period

Practical Test Impersonations

1/10/2024 to 30/09/2025

647

1/10/2023 to 30/09/2024

388

1/10/2022 to 30/09/2023

442

1/10/2021 to 30/09/2022

146

1/10/2020 to 30/09/2021

0

As a civil service department, DVSA has certain principles and processes that must be followed, and all employees must meet the standards of conduct and behaviour set out in the Civil Service code and the DVSA’s Staff handbook.

Effective performance is expected of all employees. Addressing poor performance fairly, effectively and promptly is critical to maintaining a professional service, and DVSA, as with other civil service departments, has poor performance policy and guidance in place.

The role of a DE is complex and requires rigorous training. There is a statutory requirement for DEs to undertake continuous professional development to ensure they maintain their skills. All DEs go through an extensive training regime and attend regular periodic training. This ensures they carry out all of the test properly. In addition, there is a robust monitoring system in place and DE performance is regularly assessed.

As civil servants, DEs, are required to undertake fraud awareness training and regular refresher training on this topic.