Recommendations & Conclusions
7 items
9
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Acknowledged
From April 2020 to March 2022, the DVLA did not answer 60 million calls to its drivers’ licence customer service number, 94% of the total it received. The number of calls to the DVLA about driving licences surged in Summer 2020 and stayed above pre- pandemic levels for two years, …
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From April 2020 to March 2022, the DVLA did not answer 60 million calls to its drivers’ licence customer service number, 94% of the total it received. The number of calls to the DVLA about driving licences surged in Summer 2020 and stayed above pre- pandemic levels for two years, rising from an average of less than 0.5 million calls per month in 2019–20 to an average of 3.5 million calls per month in 2021–22. The DVLA did not increase its capacity to answer calls in response to the surge in demand – the NAO found the number of calls the DVLA answered 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 2022.19
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the Committee's (implied) recommendation, setting a target implementation date of September 2023, and states the DVLA and department will provide a joint letter to the Committee within six months.
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HM Treasury
13
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Acknowledged
The DVLA told us that at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic its first priority had been to maintain its online services because most licence applications are initiated online.26 In the periods during the pandemic when customers who applied on paper experienced substantial delays, almost all customers without notifiable medical …
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The DVLA told us that at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic its first priority had been to maintain its online services because most licence applications are initiated online.26 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. However, there will always be some customers who need the option of applying for a driving licence using a paper form instead of an online service.27 The DVLA wrote to us after the evidence session and told us of the Lloyds Bank Essential Digital Skills report, which indicates that a substantial proportion of adults do not have the skills to use online services. It told us its goal is to “create digital services so good people choose to use them” but that it should avoid disenfranchising people unable or unwilling to use online services.28
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Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the importance of providing non-digital options, highlighting the DVLA's existing digital services and strategy to encourage their use, while noting the challenges of paper applications and the need to avoid disenfranchising those unable or unwilling to use online services.
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HM Treasury
14
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Acknowledged
The DVLA told us it estimates that about 60% of the paper-based applications it receives could have been made online, and so those customers experienced longer waiting times than they needed to. During the pandemic, the DVLA investigated the reasons for this and found that some people do not trust …
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The DVLA told us it estimates that about 60% of the paper-based applications it receives could have been made online, and so those customers experienced longer waiting times than they needed to. During the pandemic, the DVLA investigated the reasons for this and found that some people do not trust putting their personal data into an online application. The DVLA adapted its publicity campaign to try to give people reassurance that its online services are safe and secure.29
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendations and highlights existing actions by the DVLA to promote online services and address concerns about data security, and to improve services.
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HM Treasury
18
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Acknowledged
At the onset of the pandemic, the DVLA sought to make paper driving licence services more resilient. The NAO reported that the DVLA decided to find additional office space in April 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic in Wales had just started.37 The DVLA has since invested in new buildings and …
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At the onset of the pandemic, the DVLA sought to make paper driving licence services more resilient. The NAO reported that the DVLA decided to find additional office space in April 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic in Wales had just started.37 The DVLA has since invested in new buildings and additional staff, and made more services available online. In 2020, it made changes to the law to postpone driving licence renewals, but the Department told us that it decided on road safety grounds to limit this legal extension to licenses that expired over an 11-month period, leading to a spike in renewals in 2021.38 The Department told us that although the DVLA had contingency plans, they did not anticipate and plan for the combined impact of industrial action and the COVID-19 pandemic continuing into 2021.39 33 Qq 11, 14, 18–20 34 Q 20; C&AG’s Report, para 16 35 Q 23 36 Qq 22, 35–36, 41–42 37 Q 20; C&AG’s Report para 3.6 38 Qq 19–20, 25–31; C&AG’s Report, paras 22, 24–25 39 Qq 20–22 14 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA
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Government response AI summary
The government highlights that online services worked well, but the challenge was with paper driving licence applications and drivers’ medical applications.
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HM Treasury
20
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Acknowledged
Despite the DVLA clearing the backlog in most driving licence applications by mid- 2022, there remains a backlog in applications that involve the DVLA making a medical decision. Processing times for applications that involve such decisions are still far longer than for other driving licence applications, with many medical decisions …
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Despite the DVLA clearing the backlog in most driving licence applications by mid- 2022, there remains a backlog in applications that involve the DVLA making a medical decision. Processing times for applications that involve such decisions are still far longer than for other driving licence applications, with many medical decisions taking a year or more. For example, the NAO found that in September 2022, 33,000 applications were more than 200 working days old. Of the cases closed in September 2022, around 2,000 had been waiting for a decision for over 350 working days. At the time we took evidence in November 2022, the DVLA expected to clear this backlog by January 2023.41
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation but highlights that the number of cases where a medical condition must be investigated before a licence can be issued have returned to normal levels.
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HM Treasury
24
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Acknowledged
The evidence we heard from the Department suggested to us that it has taken a hands- off approach to the DVLA, and not ensured that the DVLA’s services are periodically reviewed and improved through timely adoption of modern working practices and up- to-date technology. For example, when we asked what …
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The evidence we heard from the Department suggested to us that it has taken a hands- off approach to the DVLA, and not ensured that the DVLA’s services are periodically reviewed and improved through timely adoption of modern working practices and up- to-date technology. For example, when we asked what the Department was doing to help the DVLA speed up the processing of applications from customers with relevant medical conditions, the Permanent Secretary acknowledged that the area was a challenge but did not describe specific actions the Department was taking.48 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. The DVLA wrote to us after the evidence session and told us that over 80% of all its transactions are completed online.49 The DVLA acknowledged that while almost all its services are digitised, applications for vocational licences and applications involving complex medical decisions are not. On its plans for digitisation the DVLA commented that “it is more of a 10-year timeline to be predominantly or almost everything digital.”50 The DVLA argues that it is now a much nimbler organisation after changes introduced during the pandemic. It has taken steps to make its operations more resilient, including opening an office in a second location, Birmingham.51
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation to set out a strategy for how the DVLA will re-engineer and modernise the driving licence process over the next 3 to 5 years but only restates existing actions rather than committing to something new.
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HM Treasury
25
Conclusion
Forty-first Report - Driving licence ba…
Acknowledged
The pandemic exposed weaknesses in the DVLA’s current operations which rely heavily on staff working on site and IT systems that hold customers’ personal information which staff can only access on site. Currently, remote working is limited, particularly for operational staff working on driving licences who have to be on …
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The pandemic exposed weaknesses in the DVLA’s current operations which rely heavily on staff working on site and IT systems that hold customers’ personal information which staff can only access on site. Currently, remote working is limited, particularly for operational staff working on driving licences who have to be on site to work. The DVLA told us that at present, almost 60% of staff are working entirely on site as they have been doing throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, while the other 40% of the DVLA’s staff are in roles that permit hybrid working and work on site at least 40% of the time. The DVLA highlighted “a really strong sense of fairness” in its culture, which it said means the current situation where non-operational staff now have the opportunity to hybrid work between their homes and the office, while others must be on site, is challenging.52 The 46 Qq 51, 109 47 Qq 53, 80–82; C&AG’s Report, para 1.9; Letter from DVLA to PAC dated 8 December 48 Q 90 49 Qq 45, 105; Letter from DVLA to PAC dated 8 December 50 Qq 46, 47, 98 51 Qq 23, 76 52 Qq 36, 48; C&AG’s Report, paras 1.7, 3.15 16 Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA DVLA told us there were many issues with remote access to driving licence data systems, including security of the large amount of personal information it holds, and underlying technological challenges. The DVLA’s digital transformation plans aim to improve customer experiences, but do not aim to increase resilience through making it possible for more staff to work from home.53
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation but only restates existing actions rather than committing to something new.
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HM Treasury