People from London, Manchester and Birmingham are booking driving tests in the Highlands and Islands to try and get a quicker test.
From Mallaig and even in the Western Isles – reports are that drivers from across the country are taking up slots, leaving learner drivers with longer waits for their own tests.
Drivers wanting to take a driving test can book a practical exam anywhere in the country.
With the Caledonian Sleeper from London, frustrated learners may feel the trip north could save them time and money.
But with only one driving school in Mallaig, and one instructor – getting their hands on a car to take the test in is proving quite a problem.
Last month one man offered “more than £1,000” to use a car for an hour.
Raj Smith, who runs One L of a Driving School, and has been teaching pupils for 35 years, said: “I am the only instructor in the area, and we have a testing centre in the village.
“What normally happens is that I have five people who I know are ready for their test and I phone the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) and I ask for specific dates.”
The DVSA then try as best as it can to accommodate those dates and adds them to the central system.
Tests need to be booked quickly
“I then get a message from the examiner telling me the tests are on the system. In this latest case there are three tests on August 19 and three on the following day.
“The pupils here then need to book the tests as soon as they can before they are booked by people from elsewhere.
“If they don’t do that within 10 to 15 minutes then they will be snapped up by someone else from anywhere in the UK.”
Mr Smith explains that an alert system tells people across the UK when the tests become available.
“So of the six tests available in August my pupils only got two of them.
“People come from all over, in the last round of tests, people came from London and Wales.”
He continues: “Someone will then phone me up and say they want to have a few lessons then sit their test in my instructor’s car in Mallaig. It just is not possible to do that.”
Aside from Mr Smith being busy, he also has one of the best first time pass rates in the UK – sitting at 99.8%.
He continued: “I had a guy come up here a year ago from London. He sent me a test date and said his name was Eugene and he was sitting his test in Mallaig.
“He asked if I had any availability, I explained that I needed the car for my own pupils and I needed to get tests for them.”
Undeterred “Eugene” arrived on the sleeper train into Mallaig, and arrived at the test centre where he offered Mr Smith £1,000 for the use of his car for the hour.
Mr Smith continued: “I said ‘you can offer me £10,000 and I would still not do it, my pupils come first’.
“The whole thing is wrong, it should be that local people should be able to book tests locally first, rather than wait months for a test.”
Tests cancelled when costs sunk in
It seems the problem doesn’t only impact on learner drivers in Mallaig.
Angela Campbell, from IsLe Drive a driving instructor for the Isle of Uist said the island did see a rise in the numbers of people booking tests there as well.
She said: “We did have quite a big issue with that when lockdown was first lifted.
“Hardly any of those people who booked an appointment actually appeared for test.
“They had no idea we were an island and once the realisation of the cost to get here sunk in most of them cancelled.”
She continued: “I also refused to help them and they can’t use a hire car for test so the complications of everything normally meant they cancelled.”
The DVSA has been invited to comment.
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