We emailed you recently to let you know that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) will be deploying their Defence Driving Examiners (DDEs) to work alongside our examiners to deliver additional HGV driving tests.

We want to share more detail on this plan and what this will mean for HGV tests.

Increase in tests

The MoD will initially be providing a number of DDEs to help create thousands of additional HGV tests between now and Christmas.

MoD examiners will be carrying out 5 tests a day over a 5-day working week.

They are fully trained to carry out HGV tests and will start testing from 11 October. This will be kept under review.

We will carry out training courses with these examiners to make them familiar with our paperwork and processes along with the local test routes.

When these additional tests can be booked

You and your pupils will be able to book these additional tests from Friday 1 October or early next week through our booking services.

These examiners will be located at DVSA and customer sites with the highest demand for HGV tests.

They will be using a DL25 paper marking form and wearing their military uniforms when carrying out DVSA HGV driving tests.

Your pupils will be asked to sign the residency and vehicle insurance declarations on this form rather than the tablets used by our examiners.

In addition to MoD examiners, DVSA is also recruiting an additional 40 vocational examiners to help ease the HGV driver shortage.