Attempts to cheat driving tests in Britain increased by 47 per cent in the space of a year, an investigation has found, sparking concerns about road safety.

Some 2,844 cases of cheating were recorded in the year to the end of September 2025, Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) figures show – up from 1,940 the year before, and 1,274 six years prior.

Of the near-3,000 cases recorded, more than a third (1,113) involved people trying to use technology like concealed Bluetooth earpieces to cheat in driving theory tests.

Another 1,084 saw people applying for a licence sending someone else in their place to take their theory test and, astonishingly, 647 cases saw people impersonating a candidate for their practical test on the roads.

The figures, obtained by the Press Association news agency, show cheats are ‘putting other road users at risk’, motoring research charity the RAC Foundation said. 

The DVSA attributed the increase in recorded cases to a combination of more cheating and better detection. Ninety-six people were prosecuted for attempting to cheat in tests or impersonate candidates in 2024/25, it said.

Impersonators and learners who use them could be sent to prison, banned from driving, ordered to carry out unpaid work and made to pay court costs.

Among those exposed as a test cheat is Satwinder Singh, who was jailed for a year in October 2023 after impersonating at least 36 learners at their theory tests – charging them £1,500 for a test that costs just £23 to sit at a time.

Satwinder Singh (pictured) was jailed for a year in October 2023 after impersonating at least 36 learner drivers at theory tests

Olivier Yolo was jailed for 24 weeks after charging learners £300 to sit tests on their behalf

Singh, who was 34 at the time, had become so prolific among DVSA staff that photos of him were distributed to test centres across the country. He was eventually rumbled at a centre in Reading, Berkshire in June 2023.

Olivier Yolo, 27, was jailed for 24 weeks at around the same time after charging learners £300 to sit their driving tests on their behalf. 

He was arrested after staff became suspicious and admitted seven counts of fraud by false representation.

And Aaron Farrell, 27, was stopped at a test centre in York as he was about to take a theory test in March 2022 by staff who recognised him from previous attempts.

Like Singh, his photograph had been circulated amongst DVSA staff. He was sentenced to 24 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months. 

In 2019, a woman was convicted after she wore a specially made hijab to her driving theory test – containing a Bluetooth headset.

The woman in her 40s, who spoke little English, had answers fed to her from a ‘facilitator’ – but was caught out by officials who recognised her from an exam two weeks prior, when she had not worn a headset.

They sensed something was off – and discovered the Bluetooth earpiece beneath the headscarf. She was sentenced to 20 weeks in jail, suspended for 12 months.

Elsewhere, Qounain Khan, now 23, of Edmund Road, Birmingham was handed an eight-month prison sentence at Cardiff Crown Court in June 2025 after pleading guilty to impersonating learners at theory test centres 12 times.

Sorina-Ana Turcitu, now 42, of Sidney Avenue, north London admitted attempting to take a practical driving test on behalf of someone else, and was sentenced to 12 weeks’ imprisonment suspended for 18 months at Ipswich Magistrates’ Court in September 2025.

Ali Rasul, now 22, of Alpha Street, Exeter, was handed a two-year prison sentence at Exeter Crown Court 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 cheating comes amid a large backlog for practical driving tests.

Prolific driving test cheat Aaron Farrell (pictured) avoided jail in 2022 after helping learners to beat the system

Driving tests are in huge demand – making it all the more important to learners that they pass their theory and practical tests first time

Learners faced an average waiting time for a test of 22 weeks in September, compared with about five weeks in February 2020 before the start of the coronavirus pandemic, when testing was largely suspended.

The DVSA said it has no evidence linking cheating to waiting times. But Carly Brookfield, chief executive of the Driving Instructors Association, told the BBC she was not surprised that fraud was on the rise.

‘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.’

Learners arriving at test centres are required to show their face to check it matches their photographic ID.

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Measures to uncover theory test cheats can include asking candidates to roll up their sleeves and show their pockets are empty, and a staff member patting them down and waving a handheld metal detector around them.

The DVSA said it also uses intelligence to identify vehicles and individuals involved in previous cheating attempts.

Marian Kitson, DVSA’s director of enforcement services, said the agency has enhanced its ‘fraud detection capabilities’.

She went on: ‘It is essential that all drivers demonstrate they have the right skills, knowledge and attitude to drive safely.

‘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.’

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: ‘The longer people have to wait to get a test slot, the greater the pressure to pass, but that’s no excuse for cheating.

‘Those looking to make money through impersonation and deception are putting other road users at risk.

‘This data demonstrates the need for DVSA to be vigilant in spotting the cheats and for the penalties to be severe.’

Emma Bush, managing director of the AA Driving School, described the increase in cheat attempts as ‘staggering’.

She added: ‘It is even more worrying that while the numbers of those caught have risen a concerning amount, it is likely some people will have cheated successfully and be on our roads.’