IMPOSSIBLE LEGISLATION?
In my previous article about publishing pass rates I mentioned that some ADI’s take their ADI licence out during tests to prevent the DSA, now known as the DVSA, collecting test data and tagging it to the ADI.
The article prompted some correspondence from readers, which is good to see. Thanks for taking the time to send us your views.
Not having your licence displayed on test is all above board because current regulations require the licence to be on display only when you are in the car giving instruction.
There are actually regulations to require a licence to be displayed in-car for tests in existence, in the Road Safety Act 2006, section 42, schedule 6, but it has never been activated.
This bit of legislation states:
displaying certificates: at present ADI’s are required to display their DSA-approved instruction certificate in the car only whilst they are giving paid instruction; in the future the Secretary of State can require that evidence of registration should be displayed in the classroom, on the business premises and in the vehicle when used for driver training or testing.
Let’s look at the purpose of the ADI licence first. The licence is simply a declaration that you are listed on the register of approved driving instructors, nothing more, and allows you receive monetary payment or money’s worth for giving instruction.
On a test you are not giving any instruction, and you might not even be in the car. So at present you don’t need it on display. It’s going to need another change to the current regulations to redefine the purpose of the ADI licence if it is to be a requirement to display when you are not being paid or not present. Which appears to suggest that the piece of legislation in schedule 6 would be unenforceable in its present form.
If it’s ever going to be possible to force an ADI to display the licence during test, and it’s a massive ‘if’, the DVSA could then collect the test data it requires to formulate an individual ADI’s pass rate. Whether DVSA can keep within data protection regulations and collect accurate data is another matter, because to date it hasn’t been able to do so.