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Preston driving test centre

Car practical driving test pass rates at Preston: each year since 2007/08, by month, for men and women, and at the first attempt, compared with Great Britain as a whole. From DVSA’s published statistics.

Last updated
Records analysed
9,194 car tests at Preston in 2025/26
Methodology
View methodology
  • Pass rate, 2025/26 56.3% Great Britain 50.0%
  • Tests taken 9,194 5,174 passes
  • First-attempt pass rate 56.9% Great Britain 50.5%
  • Rank by pass rate 52 of 260 centres with 1,000+ tests
  • Women’s pass rate 54.0% GB 49.1%
  • Men’s pass rate 58.2% GB 50.8%

What is the pass rate at Preston?

In April 2025 to March 2026, 56.3% of car practical tests at Preston were passes (5,174 of 9,194), against 50.0% across Great Britain: 6.2 points higher. That is 52nd highest of 260 centres with 1,000 or more tests. The year before it was 53.7%.

Pass rate at Preston and in Great Britain

Highest 61.1% in 2022/23, lowest 47.1% in 2014/15. −3.6 points since 2020/21.

Car practical test pass rate at Preston and in Great Britain by financial year
Year PrestonGreat Britain
2007/08 49.2%44.2%
2008/09 47.7%45.3%
2009/10 50.7%45.9%
2010/11 51.8%46.3%
2011/12 48.6%46.9%
2012/13 49.3%47.2%
2013/14 48.8%47.1%
2014/15 47.1%46.9%
2015/16 49.8%47.1%
2016/17 52.5%47.1%
2017/18 54.6%46.3%
2018/19 55.2%45.8%
2019/20 54.6%45.9%
2020/21 59.9%49.8%
2021/22 56.9%48.9%
2022/23 61.1%48.4%
2023/24 56.7%47.9%
2024/25 53.7%48.7%
2025/26 56.3%50.0%

Source:DVSA April 2025 to March 2026 Updated

Pass rates for men and women

In 2025/26, women passed 54.0% of tests at Preston and men 58.2%. Across Great Britain the figures were 49.1% and 50.8%.

Pass rate by gender

Pass rate by gender at Preston and in Great Britain, 2025/26
Candidates PrestonGreat Britain
Women 54.0%49.1%
Men 58.2%50.8%
All 56.3%50.0%

Source:DVSA April 2025 to March 2026 Updated

Passing first time at Preston

5,178 people took their first practical test at Preston in 2025/26 and 56.9% passed, against 50.5% of first attempts across Great Britain. 253 of them passed without a single driving fault.

First-attempt pass rate

First-attempt pass rate at Preston and in Great Britain by financial year
Year PrestonGreat Britain
2007/08 48.4%43.3%
2008/09 47.1%45.3%
2009/10 50.5%45.7%
2010/11 51.6%46.2%
2011/12 49.5%47.5%
2012/13 49.4%47.7%
2013/14 49.7%47.9%
2014/15 47.3%47.6%
2015/16 50.1%47.5%
2016/17 50.3%47.1%
2017/18 54.9%46.7%
2018/19 55.2%46.6%
2019/20 55.6%46.4%
2020/21 60.1%51.1%
2021/22 57.1%49.3%
2022/23 61.4%48.3%
2023/24 56.5%48.1%
2024/25 53.8%48.9%
2025/26 56.9%50.5%

Source:DVSA April 2025 to March 2026 Updated

Month by month

Monthly pass rates move more than yearly ones because each month has fewer tests. DVSA withholds some monthly counts to protect candidates’ privacy; the rate is still shown.

Monthly pass rate

Monthly car test pass rate at Preston
Month Preston
Apr 2025 51.9%
May 2025 51.4%
Jun 2025 58.8%
Jul 2025 52.0%
Aug 2025 58.5%
Sep 2025 60.0%
Oct 2025 59.2%
Nov 2025 52.8%
Dec 2025 56.9%
Jan 2026 61.1%
Feb 2026 56.1%
Mar 2026 57.4%

Source:DVSA April 2025 to March 2026 Updated

Tests each month

Car tests each month at Preston (withheld months show as zero)
Month Tests
Apr 2025 671
May 2025 805
Jun 2025 868
Jul 2025 895
Aug 2025 781
Sep 2025 633
Oct 2025 647
Nov 2025 722
Dec 2025 619
Jan 2026 812
Feb 2026 847
Mar 2026 894

Source:DVSA April 2025 to March 2026 Updated

The most common reasons for failing

DVSA publishes the most common faults for Great Britain as a whole, not for each centre. In April 2025 to March 2026 they were:

  1. Junctions - observation
  2. Mirrors - change direction
  3. Junctions - turning right
  4. Response to signs - traffic lights
  5. Control - steering
  6. Move off - safely
  7. Response to signs - road markings
  8. Response to signs - traffic signs
  9. Positioning - normal driving
  10. Maintain progress - speed

Data sources and methodology

Datasets used on this page
Figures Source Period Records Updated
Driving tests Driving test and theory test data (DRT tables) Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency April 2025 to March 2026 9,194 car tests at Preston in 2025/26 15 September 2026
  • Car practical tests (categories B and B1) in financial years, April to March. Great Britain only: DVSA does not test in Northern Ireland.
  • DVSA leaves out of centre figures any centre where only one examiner tested, but counts those tests nationally, and withholds small counts (“..”) where they could identify people.
  • Centres are matched across years by name. Pass rates reflect the candidates who test at a centre as well as the centre itself.
  • DVSA’s tables give centre names only, with no address, so we do not place centres in council areas.
How we calculate these figures All data sources

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.