Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of closing test centres on businesses reliant on individual vehicle approval testing.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has no specific plans to prioritise vehicles commissioned for essential purposes, but should there be a specific need, DVSA would consider this in a similar way to actions taken during the pandemic. DVSA would welcome contact from any customers who are believe they have a specific requirement in relation to essential service vehicles.

DVSA understands the customer base for Individual Vehicle Approval (IVA) testing and continue to ensure its network supports those customers and meets their needs. In addition, DVSA is planning a network of vehicle examination facilities that are approved customer sites. This will increase the number of sites nationally where Vehicle Approvals can be conducted.

DVSA is increasing the number of locations where IVA checks can be carried out and ensuring that it has flexibility to meet customer demand. When DVSA is considering the closure of its own testing facilities, DVSA will also ensure suitable service provision is still provided.

The number of Specialist Vehicle Standards Assessors (SVSAs) who conduct IVA testing is shown below.

Northern England and Scotland – 11 SVSAs

Southern England and Southwest – 10 SVSAs

Eastern England and the Southeast – 9 SVSAs

West Midlands and Wales – 12 SVSAs

DVSA can deploy Specialist Standard Assessors on a national basis where required, in response to customer demand.

DVSA is also in the process of recruiting a further six SVSA’s. In line with demand. DVSA keeps recruitment or multi-skilling of existing teams to increase flexibility under review.