Learner drivers who have had a car permit for four years will have to take a driving test before renewing their permit under new rules that aim to close an 11-year-old loophole in the law.
The regulations will, however, not come into effect until November 2026, which will disappoint road-safety campaigners.
Minister of State for Transport Seán Canney has signed regulations requiring the test, which for most learners is expected to be for their third permit.
As of September, almost 63,000 learners, more than 19 per cent of all learners, have renewed their car permit three or more times. “Of those 63,000 learners, 60 per cent, or 38,000, have never taken a driving test,” Minister of State Neale Richmond told the Dáil, standing in for Mr Canney.
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“Under this proposal, a learner, after holding a permit for four years, must take a practical test before renewing a permit,” said Mr Redmond. “For most learners, this will be for their third permit.”
He added that after seven years the learner will have to go through the entire process again, including the theory test, the 12 compulsory driver training lessons and the practical driving test.
The Minister stressed that “a learner permit is not a driving license. It allows the holder to drive on public roads accompanied by a qualified driver while learning to drive” until they complete the process and pass the driving test.
The Minister said Mr Canney is due to sign the regulations “very shortly”, but chairman of the Oireachtas Transport Committee Michael Murphy said the reply he received stated the that the Minister signed the regulations on Tuesday.
The reply stated: “Yesterday Minister Canney signed the regulations in secondary legislation enabling these changes to take place. The RSA [Road Safety Authority] will contact those directly affected, with information on the changes in due course.”
Mr Murphy, who raised the issue of multiple learner permit holders, said the Road Safety Authority committed in 2014 to addressing the issue, but “we still have a situation where tens of thousands of drivers can legally stay on the road without ever proving they’re competent to drive”.
He added that some of the 63,000 learners have renewed their permits more than 20 times.
“The situation is deeply unfair to the majority of learners who do the right thing. Those who complete their lessons, prepare properly and take the test when they’re ready. It also undermines public confidence in the system.”
The Tipperary South Fine Gael TD added that the related issue of the growing number of “no shows” for driving tests had to be tackled at the same time. He pointed out that in July and August alone, 2,000 candidates failed to show up for their test and did not cancel. This meant that “over 6,000 hours of testers’ time was lost because candidates simply didn’t turn up”.
“That’s the equivalent of hundreds of extra tests that could be carried out, tests that people desperately waiting could have taken,” Mr Murphy said.
