Why DGT examiners are profitable for the State and how their success could end up collapsing the system

The DGT examiner, whose staff shortage is putting at risk thousands of jobs in the driving school sector and the survival of hundreds of small businesses, is a profitable civil servant for the State.

This is one of the main conclusions of the analyses being carried out by the National Confederation of Driving Schools (CNAE) regarding the pressing problem faced by driving schools across Spain as a result of the shortage of examiners in our country; a problem that could bring the Road Training system to a standstill within a few weeks.

The staff of 756 examiners cost the State around 23 million euros. CNAE’s calculations show that a driving test examiner is extremely profitable for the State, as they generate a considerable volume of income through the fees each candidate must pay to obtain the driving licence.

The driving test is a service provided by the Directorate-General for Traffic (DGT) in exchange for a fee of 90.30 euros, which entitles candidates to two attempts. This same amount must be paid again if the student fails both attempts, and it entitles them to two further sittings.

In 2016, the number of candidates who passed on the first or second attempt was 789,700, which represented income for the DGT of 71.3 million euros. To this must be added the 15 million euros collected in fees from the 166,345 candidates on their third and fourth attempts, and the 4.4 million euros from those who passed from the fifth attempt onwards, which was 48,531 students.

The total fees paid in 2016 amounted to 90.7 million euros, while the staff of 756 examiners cost the State around 23 million euros.

The shortage of examiners causes significant delays in test scheduling, as well as unexpected date changes, which bring practical driving instruction at the driving school to a halt, and it resumes shortly before the test. These stoppages can lead driving schools to dismiss thousands of instructors (there are 17,975 across Spain), because they cannot cope with this absence of activity and revenue. The shortage of examiners has resulted in up to 900,000 tests not being carried out per year, which, on the other hand, represents a lost revenue opportunity for the DGT.

The CNAE fears a collapse of the system this coming summer if the shortfall of examiners, estimated at between 200 and 300, is not covered. These would have to be added to the current DGT staff, officially made up of 756 civil servants, although the operational number is much lower, estimated at just over 600 examiners.