Figures released this autumn by the DVLA have indicated that the overall driving test pass rate in the UK has remained relatively stable throughout 2013-14 at 47.1%.
Over the past 12 months a total of 1,477, 585 tests were taken, up just 41,000 on the previous year. Compare that to the pre-Credit Crunch yearly increases (for example 2007-08) of around 300,000 per annum, and it’s clear that there’s been a considerable drop off – in fact numbers are 15% down.
However, it’s not all gloom and doom for driving instructors who are looking for clients – the number of young people taking their theory test was up last year by 20%, although failures also rose by 1.5%.
What all this means for ADIs is that they’re going to have to be smarter in the way they advertise their business to attract a static pool of learners. And for those coming into the business as newly qualified instructors it could be harder than they thought to establish themselves and build up a client base.
Regional variations
There’s some wide variations in the regional picture too, with Scotland’s learners having a higher success rate (a very impressive 80% on the Isle of Mull) compared to Belvedere test centre in London, that struggled with a 32.2% pass rate. The differences could be due to things such as traffic conditions (far more congested in London than on the Isle of Mull, for example!) and the socio-economic demographic. In London there are fewer pupils with English as a first language, which has been shown to have a direct impact on pass rates.
For driving instructors, insurance, maintenance costs and even advertising bills are all financial considerations that depend on a reliable source of income. And with a shrinking pool of learners and more ADIs coming into the business, it could be that the fight to attract learners is going to become fiercer than ever. That in turn could drive lesson prices down, but how far are driving instructors prepared to cut costs to learners to attract new customers before it starts to have a serious impact on their bottom line numbers?