1-in-4 learners opt for automatic-only driving licences

Published: 26/09/2025

New figures from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) show that one-in-four driving tests in Great Britain are being taken in automatic cars, accounting for 479,556 (26%) of the 1.8 million driving tests taken in England, Scotland, and Wales last year.

Taking the test in an automatic car restricts the driver to a Category B Auto-only licence. To gain a manual licence at a later date is only possible by taking a driving test in a manual car; something that is unlikely.

This would restrict people from owning most classic cars and vans.

The trend is being driven by the UK's ban on the sale of new petrol-only and diesel-only cars coming in 2030, as EV and hybrids are automatics.

Emma Bush, MD of AA's driving school, says the need to know how to drive a manual car is becoming “irrelevant to many”.
“As we head closer to 2030 and the ban on the sale of new pure-petrol/diesel cars, more and more learners will want to learn in an electric vehicle as that’s all they will plan to drive.”

The number of driving tests taken in automatics was 87,844 in 2012/13, or 6% of all tests.

The AA is predicting that 29% of all tests will be taken in automatics in 2025/26.

The DVSA figures also show that more men are opting to take their tests in automatics.

In 2012/13, 23% of learners taking tests in automatics were men. Last year, that figure was 39%.

The pass rate for automatics last year was slightly lower than for manuals. However, the gap has narrowed since 2012.