Turn evidence into useful practice

Look at the skills behind the faults.

Choose a test centre to explore recorded fault categories. These counts can help structure a conversation about observation, control and planning alongside your own lesson feedback.

Understand the count

A single test can record several faults, including more than one type. Counts are not numbers of failed tests or your chance of committing a fault. The attachment does not supply matching test denominators for a fault-rate calculation.

Keep the dates visible

We use explicitly labelled January and February 2026 rows in DVSA’s July 2026 response. Later and unlabelled repeated blocks are excluded. A centre may have only one of these months; missing observations are not zero.

Practise the full syllabus

Use the figures alongside feedback from a qualified instructor. A recorded category does not identify a test route, exact junction or guaranteed manoeuvre. Historical category names are retained, including legacy labels.

Reset

313 unambiguously matched statistical centres. The source contains 314 named centre records; unmatched names remain in the downloadable data.

Boston: January 2026 and February 2026

Sorted by serious-fault count, then dangerous-fault count. The driving-fault column is a separate severity category.

Published fault categorySeriousDangerousDriving faults
Junctions - observation7531280
Mirrors - change direction5214177
Response to signs - road markings46453
Response to signs - traffic lights44140
Response to signs - traffic signs42346
Positioning - normal driving304141
Maintain progess - speed290451
Judgement - meeting249107
Move off - safely246346
Move off - control223241
Control - steering217327
Pedestrian crossing21646
Reverse park - Observatons18094
Use of speed17193
Clearance / obstructions165123
Reverse park - Control161189
Junctions - turning right16065
Maintain progress - undue hesitation140396
Awareness/planning134117
Signals - correctly130270
Judgement - crossing1158
Mirrors - change speed100174
Reverse right - Observation8033
Signals - necessary8060
Following distance7065
Judgement - overtaking6118
Vehicle checks60104
Junctions - approach speed52155
Taxi/Forward Park cont5279
Control - Footbrake5085
Reverse right - Control5024
Position - normal stops4193
Junctions - turning left4029
Response to signs - other road users409
Ancillary controls3015
Signals - timed3094
Control - gears2068
Junctions - cutting corners203
Positioning - lane discipline2019
Taxi/Forward Park obs2025
Control Stop - Promptness107
Eyesight100
Mirrors - signalling10195
Precautions103
Response to signs - traffic controllers101
Control - clutch0129
Control - parking brake0115
Control - accelerator001
Control - balance000
Controlled stop - Control000
ECO Driving000
Highway Code000
Reverse left - Control000
Reverse left - Observation000
Turn in road - Control000
Turn in road - Observations000

Source and reproducible data

DVSA FOI response 2606-112694 and Annex H, published 1 July 2026. Our download preserves the source categories, per-month counts, original-file checksum and exclusions. Crown copyright information is reused under the default Open Government Licence; no individual test or candidate records are included.