Driving test cheating soars with use of headsets and impersonators

Cheating cases during practical and theory driving tests rose by nearly 50 per cent last year in England, Scotland and Wales, new figures show.

The cheating methods varied, according to freedom of information data from the Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), with more than 1,100 cases involving the use Bluetooth headsets.

Overall, nearly 100 offenders were prosecuted for trying to cheat themselves or for impersonating driving test candidates.

Industry leaders blamed the increase on the nationwide shortage of tests and drivers’ desperation to pass, while the DVSA blamed a general rise in cheating and improved detection.

A Press Association News Agency freedom information request revealed 2,844 attempts to cheat during driving tests in the year to September 2025, 47% higher than the previous year.

Of those, more than a third (1,113) involved the use of technology, such as an earpiece connected via Bluetooth to a concealed phone, to try to cheat at a theory test.

Meanwhile people attempted 1,084 times to try to take theory tests while impersonating the registered candidate.

And in 647 incidents, people pretended to be the registered candidate for a practical test.

Dr Rasha Kassem, leader of the Fraud Research Group at Aston University, warned of the dangers of people passing tests illegally without actually knowing how to drive.

“It means that there will be more accidents, collisions, insurance issues as well, damage to the car, and damage to human beings, injuries, and in some cases, death,” she said.

“There has to be public awareness, because this is a serious crime, from my perspective, and also in the eyes of the law. It is fraud.”

Impersonators, and those who use them, face punishments ranging from driving bans to prison sentences. They can also be ordered to carry out unpaid work or made to pay court costs.

Ninety-six people were prosecuted for attempting to cheat on driving tests or impersonate candidates in the 12 months to September last year.

Steps taken to try and prevent fraud including matching a practical test candidate’s face with their photo ID, as well as asking theory candidates to roll up their sleeves and show their pockets are empty.

Examples of people prosecuted last year, reported by the Press Association News Agency, include 23-year-old Qounain Khan, who was handed an eight-month prison sentence in June 2025 after pleading guilty to impersonating learners at theory test centres 12 times.

The court heard impersonators could be paid up to £2,000 for passing a test.

Sorina-Ana Turcitu, 42, admitted attempting to take a practical driving test on behalf of someone else. She was sentenced to 12 weeks’ imprisonment suspended for 18 months in September 2025.

And Ali Rasul, 22, was handed a two-year prison sentence in November 2025 after being caught repeatedly trying to cheat the theory test over an eight-month period either by using a hidden earpiece or an impersonator.

The rise in reported cheating comes as learner drivers face persistently long waits for practical tests slots. The DVSA said it had no evidence cheating was linked to waiting times.

However, Carly Brookfield, chief executive of the Driving Instructors Association, told the BBC she was not surprised that fraud was on the rise in this context.

“It almost seems inevitable in an era of lots of demand, but very little consistent supply, that you are going to get people engaging in risky behaviours, like using a cheat service to try and pass.”

She said people who “don’t want to risk going on the torturous merry-go-round and trying to get another slot…might take the risk, unfortunately, of cheating.”

Dr Kassem also believed long wait times to book a slot was likely to be a factor, with some people resorting to fraud for reasons such as needing to get a licence quickly for a job.

In December, the National Audit Office warned that the driving test backlog would not be cleared until November 2027.

Causes include poor recruitment and retention of examiners and third-party websites booking up slots using automated programs known as bots.

The Department for Transport (DfT) previously announced more action to try to get the backlog down, including employing military driving examiners and only allowing learner drivers to book and manage their practical driving tests from the coming Spring.

Marian Kitson, the DVSA’s director of enforcement services, said the organisation was committed to tackling practical and theory test fraud, and had increased its detection capabilities.

“It is essential that all drivers demonstrate they have the right skills, knowledge, and attitude to drive safely. People who attempt to cheat driving tests put all road users at risk by trying to obtain a driving licence fraudulently,” she said.

“Our counter-fraud team carries out robust investigations into suspected fraud, working with the police to bring fraudsters to justice and keep Britain’s roads safe.”