Case Reference: FT/D/2025/0240
Transport
Heard by CVP
Heard on: 1/8/25
Before
TRIBUNAL JUDGE BARRETT
Between
MOHAMMAD MOIN
Appellant
and
THE REGISTRAR OF APPROVED DRIVING INSTRUCTORS
Respondent
Decision: The appeal is Dismissed. The Registrar’s decision of 5 February 2025 is upheld.
REASONS
Introduction
The Appellant is a trainee driving instructor who was granted two trainee licences under section 129 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (the “Act”) each for a six-month period running 15 January 2024 to 13 Janurary 2025. He was refused a third trainee licence by a decision of the Registrar of Approved Driving Instructors (‘the Registrar’) made on 5 February 2025. The Appellant now appeals that decision.
The Appellant attended the hearing via telephone but the Respondent, in line with its usual practice, did not attend and instead sought to rely on the written submissions alone.
What follows is a summary of the submissions, evidence and our view of the law. It does not seek to provide every step of our reasoning. The absence of a reference by us to any specific submission or evidence does not mean it has not been considered.
Legal Framework
The Appellant's name is not on the Register of Approved Driving Instructors ("the Register") and is therefore prohibited from giving paid driving instructions by section 123 (1) of the Act unless he holds a trainee licence issued by the Registrar pursuant to section 129(1) of the Act.
The grant of a trainee licence enables applicants to provide instruction for payment before they are qualified. A trainee licence under section 129(1) of the Act is granted:
‘for the purpose of enabling a person to acquire practical experience in giving instruction in driving motor cars with a view to undergoing such part of the examination... as consists of a practical test of ability and fitness to instruct.’
In order to qualify as an Approved Driving Instructor, applicants must pass the ‘Qualifying Examination’ comprised of three parts: the written examination (‘Part 1’); the driving ability and fitness test (‘Part 2’); and the instructional ability and fitness test (‘Part 3’).
The whole qualifying examination must be completed within two years of passing Part 1, and only three attempts are allowed for each Part, failure to comply with either of these requirements results in the whole examination needing to be retaken.
If a candidate has passed Part 2, they may be granted a trainee licence. The grant of a trainee licence enables applicants to provide instruction for payment before they are qualified. It is possible to qualify as an Approved Driving Instructor without having held a trainee licence.
By section 129(3) of the Act
"The Registrar may refuse to grant a licence under this section to an applicant to whom such a licence has previously been issued."
By section 129(8)(c) of the Act
"before deciding whether or not to refuse the application, the Registrar must take into consideration any such representations made within that period."
By section 129(6) of the Act:-
"Notwithstanding any provision of regulations made by virtue of subsection (5) above prescribing the period for which a licence is to be in force, where a person applies for a new licence in substitution for a licence held by him and current at the date of the application, the previous licence shall not expire—
(a)until the commencement of the new licence, or
if the Registrar decides to refuse the application, until the time limited for an appeal under the following provisions of this Part of this Act against the decision has expired and, if such an appeal is duly brought, it is finally disposed of."
When making its Decision, the Tribunal stands in the shoes of the Registrar and takes a fresh decision on the evidence available to it, giving appropriate weight to the Registrar’s decision as the person tasked by Parliament with making such decisions. The burden of proof in satisfying the Tribunal that the Registrar’s decision was wrong rests with the Appellant.
The Appeal
The Appellant’s notice of appeal dated 17 February 2025 relies on the following grounds as reasons for the appeal:
That at the time of the first attempt at the Part 3 test the original pupil became unavailable at the last minute and meant there was insufficient time to properly prepare with a new pupil.
Further part 3 tests were cancelled because it was advised the Appellant was not ready to take the test.
The sponsoring school has struggled to find pupils for the Appellant that were not already at ‘test-ready’ status.
The Registrar’s notice of refusal dated 5 February 2025 states the reasons for the refusal as:
The Appellant provided no evidence of lost practice time.
The Appellant had already been granted two trainee licences of six months duration each, which is considered to be a more than adequate period of time.
It was not Parliament’s intention that the candidates should be issued licences for as long as it takes them to pass the examination and the trainee licence system must not be allowed to become an alternative to registration as a fully qualified Approved Driving Instructor.
The Registrar’s statement of case dated 17 June 2025 resists the appeal. The Registrar states that it considered the Appellants representations and refused the Appellant’s application for the following reasons:
The purpose of the provisions governing the issue of licences is to afford applicants the opportunity of giving instruction to members of the public whilst endeavouring to achieve registration. The system of issuing licences is not and must not be allowed to become an alternative to the system of registration (para 6(i)).
The licence granted to applicants is not to enable the instructor to teach for however long it takes to pass the examinations, but to allow up to six months experience of instruction (on each such licence). This provides a very reasonable period in which to reach the qualifying standard in the examination and in particular, to obtain any necessary practical experience in tuition. Moreover, by virtue of the Appellant having applied for a third licence before the expiry date of the second, that licence has remained in force to the present time and allowed him to continue to give paid instruction until determination of the appeal (para 6(ii)).
Since passing her driving ability test the Appellant has failed the instructional ability test once (Annex A) Despite ample time and opportunity the Appellant has not been able to reach the required standard for qualification as an Approved Driving Instructor. (para 6(iii)).
The refusal of a third licence does not bar the Appellant from attempting the instructional ability test of the Register examinations. He does not need to hold a licence for that purpose, nor is it essential for him to give professional tuition under licence in order to obtain further training. The Appellant could attend a training course, or study and practice with an Approved Driving Instructor or give tuition on his own (provided that she does not receive payment of any kind for this). These alternatives are used by some trainees who acquire registration without obtaining any licences at all (para 6(iv)).
The evidence
We considered a bundle of evidence containing 22 numbered pages, including the Appellants full trainee licence history from the registrar up to 4 July 2024.
Conclusions
I have considered the Appellant’s points of appeal.
It is a common misunderstanding that individuals are entitled to continual renewal of trainee licences until they pass their Part 3 test. The six month period of such licences is set on the basis this is an adequate period to prepare for the Part 3 Test, and it is not necessary to hold a Trainee Licence in order to either prepare for or to take the Part 3 test.
We note that the Appellant has already had the benefit of two trainee licences covering a period of twelve months from 15 January 2024 to 13 January 2025. Additionally, by applying for a third trainee licence the Appellant has had the benefit of s.129(6)(b) of the Act extending the second trainee licence until this appeal is disposed of (i.e. a period of almost 13 months in addition to the first licence period of six months).
We further note that had the third trainee licence been granted this would have expired on the 12 July 2025, i.e. before the consideration of this Appeal and providing a total of only 12 months coverage.
We also note that the Appellant passed his Part 1 test on the 9 August 2023 and so his two-year period within which he must have passed both the Part 2 and Part 3 tests expires within days on 7 August 2025.
The Appellant has therefore had the benefit of being able to train by giving instruction for payment for an additional period of almost 7 months.
The Appellant has not persuaded us that the Registrar’s decision was wrong in any way. In all the circumstances, we agree with the Registrar’s decision and dismiss this appeal.
Signed Tribunal Judge T Barrett Date: 1/8/2025