A young Dublin driver was not allowed to sit his driving test because a driver tester objected to a lingering smell of cigarettes in his car, it has emerged.
The incident, which is the subject of a complaint, emerged as the Department of Transport revealed a package of measures it hopes will cut waiting times for driving tests which stretch to nearly a year in many parts of the State.
Ben Dineen, a 20-year-old student chef from Dún Laoghaire, needed a full licence to secure a part-time delivery job. But when he went to the Rathgar testing Centre at the end of April the driver tester said the car smelled of cigarettes and cancelled the test.
Mr Dineen, a non-smoker, said: "There was no smoke in the car. It was a lovely day and the windows had been open all morning. When I asked the driving tester what I was supposed to do now, he said, 'reapply'. I was given no refund." Mr Dineen managed to secure a second test date within a matter of weeks due to a cancellation at a different testing centre and, using the same car, the test went ahead.
The vehicle in question belongs to a driving instructor who is a smoker. The instructor, who asked not to be named, said his four-year-old car was regularly used by his students for driving tests and that this was the first time a test had not gone ahead.
"I have never had any problems before with regards a tester bringing out an applicant. Before every test I put the car through a car wash, wash the windows and clean inside. And it is serviced every month."
The instructor said he had experienced other problems with tests before and had complained last year about a previous incident. "Again the car was fine, except this time (the tester)refused to go out because there were some black marks on part of the door upholstery."
"He wouldn't take the student out because of that. If a test doesn't go ahead the driver is out of pocket by €40, has to go back on the waiting list and I have to give them a refund for the price of the pretest and use of the car."
The driver tester in question could not be contacted yesterday.The Department of Transport said it was not aware of a complaint from Mr Dineen.
In a statement it said: "Vehicles presented for driving tests are regarded as an enclosed workspace, and therefore must be smoke-free as defined in the Public Health (Tobacco) Act 2004."
In 2003 almost 22,000 people either did not present for their test, or had a defect with the vehicle which resulted in the test being cancelled.
