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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mirrors - change direction | 88 | 3 | 173 |
| Junctions - observation | 50 | 8 | 159 |
| Response to signs - road markings | 45 | 0 | 21 |
| Positioning - normal driving | 29 | 0 | 110 |
| Control - steering | 27 | 3 | 256 |
| Maintain progress - undue hesitation | 23 | 0 | 292 |
| Response to signs - traffic signs | 21 | 0 | 17 |
| Use of speed | 20 | 0 | 140 |
| Judgement - meeting | 18 | 0 | 70 |
| Response to signs - traffic lights | 18 | 0 | 41 |
| Reverse park - Control | 18 | 0 | 96 |
| Maintain progess - speed | 17 | 0 | 230 |
| Move off - control | 17 | 0 | 165 |
| Reverse park - Observatons | 17 | 0 | 46 |
| Move off - safely | 15 | 0 | 197 |
| Control - gears | 12 | 0 | 83 |
| Following distance | 11 | 0 | 63 |
| Awareness/planning | 9 | 1 | 86 |
| Mirrors - change speed | 9 | 0 | 91 |
| Reverse right - Observation | 9 | 0 | 27 |
| Junctions - turning right | 7 | 0 | 21 |
| Taxi/Forward Park obs | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Junctions - approach speed | 5 | 0 | 45 |
| Clearance / obstructions | 4 | 1 | 69 |
| Position - normal stops | 4 | 0 | 49 |
| Positioning - lane discipline | 4 | 0 | 40 |
| Signals - correctly | 4 | 0 | 143 |
| Judgement - overtaking | 3 | 0 | 7 |
| Pedestrian crossing | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Control - Footbrake | 2 | 0 | 49 |
| Control - parking brake | 2 | 0 | 21 |
| Reverse right - Control | 2 | 0 | 20 |
| Signals - necessary | 2 | 0 | 95 |
| Taxi/Forward Park cont | 2 | 0 | 22 |
| Vehicle checks | 2 | 0 | 85 |
| Judgement - crossing | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| Junctions - cutting corners | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Ancillary controls | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Control - accelerator | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Control - balance | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Control - clutch | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| Control Stop - Promptness | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Controlled stop - Control | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| ECO Driving | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Eyesight | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Highway Code | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Junctions - turning left | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Mirrors - signalling | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Precautions | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Response to signs - other road users | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Response to signs - traffic controllers | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Reverse left - Control | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reverse left - Observation | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Signals - timed | 0 | 0 | 28 |
| 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.