Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Forty-first Report - Driving licence backlogs at the DVLA
Public Accounts Committee
HC 735
Published 17 March 2023
Conclusions (6)
13
Conclusion
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 …
Government Response 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.
14
Conclusion
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 …
Government Response 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.
18
Conclusion
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 …
Government Response Summary
The government highlights that online services worked well, but the challenge was with paper driving licence applications and drivers’ medical applications.
20
Conclusion
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 …
Government Response 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.
24
Conclusion
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 …
Government Response 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.
25
Conclusion
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 …
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation but only restates existing actions rather than committing to something new.