Recommendations & Conclusions
14 items
2
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
The DVLA’s communication during the pandemic was ineffective, leaving many customers feeling as if their applications were making no progress. Customers had huge difficulty contacting the DVLA’s call centre during the pandemic to enquire about the progress of applications. Between April 2020 and March 2022, due to a surge in …
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The DVLA’s communication during the pandemic was ineffective, leaving many customers feeling as if their applications were making no progress. Customers had huge difficulty contacting the DVLA’s call centre during the pandemic to enquire about the progress of applications. Between April 2020 and March 2022, due to a surge in calls, around 60 million calls to the DVLA about driving licences went unanswered, 94% of the total it received. The number of calls it did answer fell by more than half, from over four million in 2019–20 alone, to 3.4 million over the two years from April 2020 to March 2022. Some of our constituents told us that when they did speak to the DVLA they found its response unhelpful, causing frustration and additional stress. Many DVLA customers went to their MPs for help: the number of complaints about the DVLA received via MPs increased tenfold between 2019–20 and 2021–22. Although most people affected by the backlogs were able to continue driving under an exemption in the Road Traffic Act 1988, this was not clear to many people. The DVLA says that it has recently modernised its telephony systems, so it should be able to cope better with future surges in demand. Recommendations: a) The DVLA should improve its communication to ensure customers understand the status of their applications and are updated regularly. This should include the information that they may be able to continue to drive while they wait for their application to be processed. b) The DVLA should also improve how it communicates this and other important information to stakeholders such as MPs. It should set out what it is doing to improve its communication in its Treasury Minute response to this report. 6 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA has a dedicated telephone line and email service which is exclusively for the use of MPs and other elected representatives if they have queries on behalf of their constituents. The DVLA aims to reply to correspondence from MPs within eight working days.
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HM Treasury
3
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
The DVLA’s efforts to encourage customers who can use online services to do so are not sufficient. Some customers need the option of applying for a driving licence using a paper form, but the DVLA assesses that around 60% of customers who apply on paper could have applied online. In …
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The DVLA’s efforts to encourage customers who can use online services to do so are not sufficient. Some customers need the option of applying for a driving licence using a paper form, but the DVLA assesses that around 60% of customers who apply on paper could have applied online. In the periods during the pandemic when customers who applied on paper experienced substantial delays, almost all customers without notifiable medical conditions who applied online had their applications processed within three working days. The DVLA rightly wants to avoid disenfranchising people unable to use online services, and its aim is to “create digital services so good people choose to use them” while keeping a paper option available. However, we believe there is considerable scope for improving take-up of DVLA’s online services and we do not agree with the Department’s approach of not setting the DVLA any targets for digitisation and digital take-up of driving licence services. Recommendations: a) The Department and the DVLA should consider what more they can do to increase take-up of the DVLA’s online services: • They should understand better why some customers have chosen not to engage with online services. • They should incentivise customers to use digital services and discourage people who can apply online from sending paper applications. b) The Department should, in its Treasury Minute response to this report, set out its plans to hold the DVLA to account for increased take-up of online services.
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Government response AI summary
The department will develop an ambitious set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) through which the department can hold them to account for the delivery of their plans and business-as-usual performance and will hold the DVLA to account for take-up of online services through this governance …
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HM Treasury
4
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
The DVLA gave insufficient attention to those driving licence service areas, such as medical notifications and its call centre, where staffing challenges led to the most detrimental consequences for customers. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the DVLA prioritised services with the highest volumes of applications or where it believed processing delays …
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The DVLA gave insufficient attention to those driving licence service areas, such as medical notifications and its call centre, where staffing challenges led to the most detrimental consequences for customers. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the DVLA prioritised services with the highest volumes of applications or where it believed processing delays would cause greater problems, such as its services related to vehicles, knowing that this would take resources away from its driving licence services. Both the DVLA and the Department knew the system for managing paper-based driving licence applications was susceptible to disruption because it relied on people being on site. At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic the DVLA sought to make paper driving licence services more resilient. It invested in new buildings and additional staff, made changes to the law to postpone driving licence renewals, and made more services available online, but these actions failed to prevent backlogs from building up and persisting for around two years. The DVLA also undertook work for other parts of government during the pandemic, such as printing vaccination invitation letters, which were of course very important tasks, but also diverted resources from DVLA’s core services. It told us this work used spare capacity in its printing and mailing facilities. Recommendations: a) The DVLA should write to us within six months to share an improved contingency plan. Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA 7 b) The DVLA and the Department should also jointly write to us, at the same time or earlier, to set out lessons learned from the driving licence backlogs saga and how they are responding to the lessons. c) The Department should ensure it understands the impact of the DVLA taking on work for other government departments and ensure there are mitigations in place to address any negative consequences for the DVLA’s core purpose.
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA prioritises its core functions while using its systems and equipment to help other government departments deliver their targets where feasible and works closely with the DVLA to ensure there are no negative consequences on its core purpose.
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HM Treasury
6
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
The Department and the DVLA have not taken a strategic approach to maintaining and improving the infrastructure, estate and processes that the DVLA’s performance depends on. The Department has taken a hands-off approach to the DVLA, failing to ensure that its services are periodically reviewed and improved through timely adoption …
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The Department and the DVLA have not taken a strategic approach to maintaining and improving the infrastructure, estate and processes that the DVLA’s performance depends on. The Department has taken a hands-off approach to the DVLA, failing to ensure that its services are periodically reviewed and improved through timely adoption of modern working practices and up-to- date technology. Consequently, the driving licence application process has become inefficient through outmoded working practices, and it is not resilient to external shocks. We recognise that the DVLA has improved and modernised some of its services, for example paying road tax is now an easy and efficient process for vehicle owners. However, the pandemic exposed weaknesses in some of the DVLA’s other 8 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA operations. Currently, most staff working on driving licences cannot work remotely because of data security risks and underlying technological challenges, which the DVLA said cannot be easily remedied. The DVLA acknowledges that while almost all its services are digitised, applications for vocational licences and applications involving complex medical decisions are not, and its plans for digitisation will take 10 years. The DVLA argues that it is now a much nimbler organisation after changes introduced during the pandemic, but we are unconvinced that it is ready for any future crises. Recommendation: The Department and the DVLA should work together to set out, by the end of 2023, a strategy for how the DVLA will re-engineer and modernise the driving licence process, over the next 3 to 5 years. Its strategy should address the extent to which its long-term digital transformation plan will make its IT infrastructure adequately resilient and if there is more it could do to enable secure remote working should another crisis occur. Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA 9 1 The DVLA’s customer service
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA already has a strategy in place to further develop its digital driver licensing services for driver licensing and, in addition to continuing to improve the accessibility and usability of its online services, the DVLA is also transforming its IT infrastructure.
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HM Treasury
1
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the Department for Transport (the Department) and the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency (the DVLA) on the scale and nature of the backlogs in driving licence applications, the underlying causes and the DVLA’s actions …
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On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the Department for Transport (the Department) and the Driver & Vehicle Licensing Agency (the DVLA) on the scale and nature of the backlogs in driving licence applications, the underlying causes and the DVLA’s actions to manage and reduce the backlogs.1
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA already has systems in place to identify and prioritise driving licence applications and will prioritise cases where the DVLA has been provided with evidence that a driving licence or identity documents submitted are required urgently. With additional resource, the DVLA is also triaging …
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HM Treasury
7
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
We are also aware of other cases from our constituency work, for example of people being unable to work after a five-month wait for a driving licence and a bus driver threatened with losing his job because of delays at the DVLA. Other constituents have lost income or not been …
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We are also aware of other cases from our constituency work, for example of people being unable to work after a five-month wait for a driving licence and a bus driver threatened with losing his job because of delays at the DVLA. Other constituents have lost income or not been able to see family members.15
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA has systems in place to identify and prioritise driving licence applications and will prioritize cases where the DVLA has been provided with evidence that a driving licence or identity documents submitted are required urgently. With additional resource, the DVLA is also triaging drivers’ …
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HM Treasury
8
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
The Department acknowledged in the session that the human stories behind these cases can be genuinely very difficult, commenting that “this is not just a numbers game. It is not just about processing and backlogs. It is about real people and the impact that not being able to get a …
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The Department acknowledged in the session that the human stories behind these cases can be genuinely very difficult, commenting that “this is not just a numbers game. It is not just about processing and backlogs. It is about real people and the impact that not being able to get a driving licence can have on their livelihoods and their lives.”16 The DVLA told us that it brought in workarounds to help customers who were badly affected by delays. For example, when the DVLA knew a customer had a job offer or employment 8 C&AG’s Report, paras 12, 20, Figure 8 9 DLB0031, DLB0036, DLB0017, DLB0028 10 DLB0052, DLB0067, DLB0015, DLB0014 11 DLB0040, DLB0058, DLB0063 12 DLB0044 13 DLB0049 14 DLB0040 15 Q 59 16 Q 56 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA 11 dependent on their driving licence being issued quickly, it looked to prioritise their case.17 However, many of our constituents clearly did not benefit from DVLA’s attempts to help customers in this way and suffered as a consequence.18 The DVLA’s communication about customers’ applications
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA already has systems to prioritize urgent driving license applications and will triage medical cases to ensure quick processing and expedite responses from medical professionals where possible.
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HM Treasury
10
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
The stress and frustration customers felt as a result came across as a clear theme in the written evidence our inquiry received from members of the public. For example, one person told us “Having no contact was useless because for all I knew, my application could’ve been lost in the …
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The stress and frustration customers felt as a result came across as a clear theme in the written evidence our inquiry received from members of the public. For example, one person told us “Having no contact was useless because for all I knew, my application could’ve been lost in the post and never received, if it was in progress or even done.”20 Some of our constituents also told us that when they did speak to the DVLA they found its response unhelpful.21
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA publishes information on the quickest way to transact on GOV.UK and during the pandemic published estimated processing times for key services. Information relating to section 88 and how someone may be able to continue driving while their application is being processed formed a …
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HM Treasury
11
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
Many customers went to their MPs for help: complaints received via MPs increased from 2,600 per year in the two years before the pandemic, to 26,800 in 2021–22. The DVLA explained to us that people were coming to MPs because they found it difficult to get through to the DVLA. …
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Many customers went to their MPs for help: complaints received via MPs increased from 2,600 per year in the two years before the pandemic, to 26,800 in 2021–22. The DVLA explained to us that people were coming to MPs because they found it difficult to get through to the DVLA. The DVLA believes the surge in complaints to MPs reflects a change in customer behaviour towards bypassing its usual complaints procedure and going straight to MPs.22 In our constituency work we had mixed experiences of dealing with the DVLA on their behalf – including some very positive experiences but not all so. We felt the DVLA could have done more to keep MPs informed about the problems it was experiencing and advise MPs on how they could help their constituents.23 Although most people affected by the backlogs were able to continue driving under an exemption in the Road Traffic Act 1988, this was not clear to many people.24
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA has a dedicated telephone line and email service for MPs and other elected representatives, aiming to reply to correspondence from MPs within eight working days.
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HM Treasury
12
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
The DVLA told us it has recently modernised its telephony systems, so in future it should be able to cope better with surges in demand. For example, with the new system it can more easily increase the number of telephone lines available. However, the DVLA cautioned that installing a new …
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The DVLA told us it has recently modernised its telephony systems, so in future it should be able to cope better with surges in demand. For example, with the new system it can more easily increase the number of telephone lines available. However, the DVLA cautioned that installing a new system on such a large scale is complex and challenging and it is therefore taking time to install.25 17 Qq 55, 73–75 18 Qq 59, 106 19 Q 103; C&AG’s Report, paras 2.14–2.15, Figure 8 20 DLB0053 21 Q 106 22 Qq 4–5; C&AG’s Report, Figure 9 23 Qq 1–7 24 Qq 59–60 25 Qq 105–106 12 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA Under-use of online services
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Government response AI summary
The government says that the DVLA already has a strategy to develop its digital driver licensing services and has invested in new online services.
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HM Treasury
15
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
We are concerned that the DVLA does not have a more active strategy for encouraging customers to switch from paper to online services, relying on customers to decide themselves to make this transition rather than proactively encouraging and supporting them do so.30 Although the DVLA told us it has seen …
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We are concerned that the DVLA does not have a more active strategy for encouraging customers to switch from paper to online services, relying on customers to decide themselves to make this transition rather than proactively encouraging and supporting them do so.30 Although the DVLA told us it has seen a huge shift to digital over the last four or five years, the NAO found that the volume of mail arriving at the DVLA has decreased only by 6% between 2019–20 and 2022–23.31 The DVLA told us that future work to switch more of its business online will be challenging, as its digitisation work is past the stage of “early gains” and has moved into “hard graft”. The Department has not set the DVLA targets on digitisation so it remains unclear how the Department will actively monitor the DVLA’s progress in further digitising services.32 26 Qq 12–13; C&AG’s Report, para 11 27 Q 44 28 Qq 65, 97; Letter from DVLA to PAC dated 8 December 29 Qq 16, 93 30 Qq 94–95, 99 31 Q 17; C&AG’s Report, para 1.8 32 Q 96 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA 13 2 Strategy and planning for driving licence services The DVLA’s contingency planning and prioritisation decisions
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA has launched ten new online services during the pandemic and has run four paid campaigns promoting online services since the beginning of the pandemic. The DfT will support the DVLA in gaining the relevant approvals for further paid campaigns to promote the take …
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HM Treasury
19
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
The DVLA told us how it undertakes work for other parts of government to make best use of the DVLA’s infrastructure, expertise and the spare capacity becoming available as customers switch from paper to online applications. For example, it produces biometric residency permits for the Home Office, and it printed …
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The DVLA told us how it undertakes work for other parts of government to make best use of the DVLA’s infrastructure, expertise and the spare capacity becoming available as customers switch from paper to online applications. For example, it produces biometric residency permits for the Home Office, and it printed and mailed out vaccination invitation letters in its secure printing and mailing facility. The DVLA also wrote to us after the evidence session and told us that this work used spare capacity in its printing and mailing facilities and provided value for money for taxpayers. Its annual report and accounts show it carried out work for other government departments worth £22 million in 2021–22, compared with £15 million in 2020–21, £12 million in 2019–20 and £9 million in 2018–19.40 Notifications from drivers of relevant medical conditions
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Government response AI summary
The Department states that it works closely with the DVLA to ensure that taking on work for other government departments has no negative consequences on the DVLA's core purpose.
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HM Treasury
21
Recommendation
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
Customers experiencing problems after notifying the DVLA of medical conditions have consistently been the main source of complaints to the DVLA since 2018–19. In 2021–22, around 53% of all complaints to the DVLA were in this category, rising to 68% in the first half of 2022–23.42 We raised concerns that …
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Customers experiencing problems after notifying the DVLA of medical conditions have consistently been the main source of complaints to the DVLA since 2018–19. In 2021–22, around 53% of all complaints to the DVLA were in this category, rising to 68% in the first half of 2022–23.42 We raised concerns that the DVLA’s pattern of providing worse service—in particular, much longer turnaround times—to customers with certain medical conditions might be an equalities issue and a potential case of discrimination against disabled applicants.43 The DVLA told us that straightforward medical conditions are generally closed much faster than applications from customers with complex or multiple medical conditions. The DVLA’s usual standard, which it is aiming to return to, is to process 90% of drivers’ medical applications within 90 working days. In our view, 90 working days is still too long for a customer to wait.44
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Government response AI summary
The government states that the number of medical licensing cases has returned to normal levels, with many decisions made quickly, but the remaining delays are due to waiting for information from third parties like the NHS.
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HM Treasury
26
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Accepted
We challenged the DVLA and the Department about their strategy for future of the DVLA. The Department told us that conversations are happening about what the future of driving licence services should look like. We heard that the DVLA will need to become more resilient to anticipated changes in the …
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We challenged the DVLA and the Department about their strategy for future of the DVLA. The Department told us that conversations are happening about what the future of driving licence services should look like. We heard that the DVLA will need to become more resilient to anticipated changes in the profile of its customers as the population ages, and respond to effect on road safety measures brought on by the potential growth in autonomous vehicles. Nevertheless, we did not feel that the DVLA and the Department were able to articulate a clear strategy for how they might re-engineer and modernise the driving licence process, encompassing for example a clear picture of what its future staff, estate and IT infrastructure needs to look like.54 53 Qq 68, 70 54 Qq 45–48, 122 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA 17
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Government response AI summary
The DVLA has been digital for years, and online services worked well during the pandemic. The DVLA already has a strategy to develop digital driver licensing services, investing in new online services and communications.
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HM Treasury