DVSA removed over 100 motorcycle instructor licenses and took 18 ATBs off the official register in 2019.
This follows a drive to do more compliance checks in the motorcycling industry.
Compliance checks allow the DVSA to make sure training schools are following the correct policies and procedures and that the equipment they’re using is safe and legal.
These checks are carried out based on intelligence gathered from a variety of sources including customer complaints, previous standards checks and previous compliance checks.
Motorcyclists are some of the most vulnerable road users, and ATBs play a vital role in making sure they have the skills to ride safely
DVSA has investigated and closed some ATBs, for selling certificates to riders without any training being undertaken.
It also found many schools delivering short CBTs, with some courses being completed in less than three hours.
Another key issue DVSA found is ATBs training more riders than their site is authorised for.
This means the riders end up not getting enough time on all aspects of the required training syllabus. The road ride and element C (practising riding skills on-site) are areas which are often shortened or not completed in full.
Some ATBs were using parts of their site which have not been approved for training or training at sites that are no longer fit for purpose.
This covers areas like car parks and sports facilities where the site may have changed significantly since it was last authorised.
In more extreme cases, DVSA found schools who claimed to have used their approved training site at a time when it was known to be unusable.
Some schools claim to have been conducting CBTs at the same time as a car boot sale or football tournament was taking place on their training site.
DVSA offers some tips to avoid any unintentional breaches.
- Make sure you are familiar with your site plan, it’s important to know what part of your area is safe to train on (DVSA will issue an updated plan if necessary)
- Make sure your instructors know what is safe to carry out on your site, to help avoid any unintentional breaches by someone using part of the site for training that hasn’t been approved, or isn’t safe because there are parked cars in the way.
If you need any more advice, you can find a poster in your local test centre with the name and contact of your CBT enforcement manager.
