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.
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.
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.
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.
313 unambiguously matched statistical centres. The source contains 314 named centre records; unmatched names remain in the downloadable data.
Sorted by serious-fault count, then dangerous-fault count. The driving-fault column is a separate severity category.
| Published fault category | Serious | Dangerous | Driving faults |
|---|---|---|---|
| Junctions - observation | 299 | 131 | 632 |
| Control - steering | 219 | 90 | 1,449 |
| Maintain progess - speed | 185 | 1 | 1,497 |
| Junctions - turning right | 166 | 0 | 222 |
| Positioning - normal driving | 140 | 15 | 554 |
| Move off - safely | 116 | 46 | 833 |
| Judgement - meeting | 114 | 37 | 337 |
| Clearance / obstructions | 112 | 56 | 691 |
| Maintain progress - undue hesitation | 105 | 4 | 1,094 |
| Reverse park - Control | 96 | 22 | 487 |
| Response to signs - traffic lights | 96 | 7 | 88 |
| Response to signs - road markings | 89 | 3 | 224 |
| Awareness/planning | 70 | 23 | 476 |
| Move off - control | 64 | 31 | 600 |
| Use of speed | 63 | 5 | 448 |
| Mirrors - change direction | 62 | 33 | 208 |
| Reverse park - Observatons | 60 | 6 | 219 |
| Mirrors - change speed | 58 | 6 | 529 |
| Judgement - crossing | 39 | 23 | 76 |
| Pedestrian crossing | 38 | 12 | 65 |
| Control - gears | 36 | 6 | 330 |
| Signals - correctly | 35 | 1 | 294 |
| Response to signs - traffic signs | 29 | 2 | 49 |
| Junctions - approach speed | 28 | 5 | 319 |
| Following distance | 27 | 6 | 227 |
| Taxi/Forward Park cont | 25 | 11 | 295 |
| Vehicle checks | 24 | 3 | 510 |
| Taxi/Forward Park obs | 24 | 0 | 91 |
| Signals - necessary | 22 | 1 | 346 |
| Reverse right - Observation | 21 | 0 | 100 |
| Judgement - overtaking | 18 | 6 | 23 |
| Junctions - cutting corners | 17 | 1 | 68 |
| Mirrors - signalling | 13 | 0 | 641 |
| Reverse right - Control | 13 | 0 | 78 |
| Response to signs - other road users | 11 | 3 | 49 |
| Position - normal stops | 11 | 0 | 389 |
| Junctions - turning left | 9 | 0 | 48 |
| Control Stop - Promptness | 7 | 0 | 48 |
| Positioning - lane discipline | 5 | 0 | 43 |
| Signals - timed | 5 | 0 | 294 |
| Control - Footbrake | 4 | 2 | 159 |
| Control - parking brake | 4 | 0 | 35 |
| Ancillary controls | 3 | 0 | 67 |
| Control - accelerator | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Control - clutch | 1 | 0 | 87 |
| Eyesight | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Control - balance | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Controlled stop - Control | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ECO Driving | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Highway Code | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Precautions | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| Response to signs - traffic controllers | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Reverse left - Control | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reverse left - Observation | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turn in road - Control | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turn in road - Observations | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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.