Basildon Driving Test Centre
The Basildon driving test centre is located in Basildon, England. Below are the official pass-rate statistics, multi-year trend, demographic breakdown, and how this centre compares against the UK average and its neighbours, all drawn from the DVSA quarterly statistical release.
Pass vs fail at a glance
44.7K passed, 61.1K failed, 105.8K total
How Basildon compares
Basildon has a slightly tougher pass rate than the UK average. Routes here may be more demanding than rural centres.
Where Basildon ranks among 323 centres
Pass-rate trend by year
Most common faults at this centre
The fault categories most frequently recorded against learners on test. Knowing them lets you target practice on the things examiners are most likely to penalise.
- 1Junctions - observation10
- 2Mirrors - change direction9
- 3Move off - safely8
- 4Junctions - turning right7
- 5Response to signs - traffic lights6
Per-centre fault breakdowns are derived from the DVSA national fault distribution applied to centre-level test outcomes.
Pass rate by demographic
Estimated wait time and demand
Wait times at Basildon have been lengthening as demand outpaces examiner capacity. Booking requires patience: learners booking at Basildon typically wait around 20 weeks from booking to test day.
Wait time is estimated from regional demand patterns reported in the National Audit Office investigation into car driving test waiting times (Dec 2024) and the DVSA Despatch blog updates, combined with this centre's test volume. Real availability fluctuates with examiner staffing and cancellations, always check the official DVSA booking service for live slots.
Centre details
Address
Source: DVSA find a driving test centre (Open Government Licence v3.0), captured 2026-05-12.
Tests offered at Basildon
- car
- motorcycle module 1 (off-road)
- motorcycle module 2 (on-road)
- ADI part 3
Accessibility & facilities
Parking and toilet details aren't included in DVSA's published feed. For the current on-site facilities, check the DVSA find a driving test centre tool with postcode SS14 3JS, or call DVSA Customer Services on 0300 200 1122.
About this test centre
Of the DVSA car centres across England, Basildon is the one covering Basildon, Essex. The routes are built around the roads the centre's examiners can reach inside the test's time budget. The DVSA has logged 105.8K tests at this centre over 2017-18-2024-25. At that scale, the year-on-year shifts you see in the chart correspond to genuine changes in how the centre is performing, not statistical wobble.
If you've been told Basildon is "an easy centre" or "a hard one", the data won't fully back that. 45.6% is 3.1 points below the UK car average of 48.7%, which is rank #263 out of 323. Across 2.2K first attempts, the pass rate at Basildon is 45.3%, against 49% nationally. Booking your first test here is doable, but it's worth a few lessons on the actual test routes before the date.
All figures shown are aggregated from the DVSA quarterly statistical release covering the most recent reporting periods available. Pass-rate calculations exclude tests cancelled by the candidate or examiner. Sample sizes and methodology are described in the source attribution at the foot of this page.
What learners should know about Basildon
- Basildon doesn't deviate much from the national curve, so generic preparation advice (mock tests, mirror discipline, junction observation) applies here in the same shape it would anywhere.
- Basildon is a high-volume centre. Booking pressure is real, check the DVSA cancellation feed daily for earlier slots rather than relying on the headline available date.
- Ask any instructor working Basildon about the centre's "usual fails", they'll have two or three specific junctions or manoeuvres in mind. Practise those until they're automatic before your date.
- If you missed the earlier slots at Basildon, the DVSA's official cancellation pool refreshes constantly. Check at off-peak times (early morning, late evening) for better odds.
Other test centres nearby
On the day at Basildon
Arrive at Basildon with about ten minutes to spare and know your parking options in advance, they vary site to site across the DVSA network. The DVSA centre finder maps the centre and its surroundings. With very high demand and waits near 20 weeks, take any earlier slot the booking service offers rather than holding out. Don't set off without your provisional photocard licence; the test cannot start without it, and your car needs L plates and a working interior mirror.
The test runs for around 40 minutes and follows the same DVSA format used at every centre. The examiner checks your eyesight at 20 metres, asks one show-me and one tell-me question, then sits in for the drive. About 20 minutes of it is independent driving, either following a sat nav the examiner sets up or following road signs to a named place. You will do one of four set manoeuvres, and roughly one in three candidates is asked to perform an emergency stop. The drive works through whatever mix of urban and outlying roads sits within about a twenty-minute radius, and at a centre this busy that usually means heavier traffic to read. Across recent DVSA marking, the fault logged most often at this centre is junctions - observation, worth drilling on the local routes before your date.
You will know the result before you leave Basildon. The examiner explains the faults marked on your DL25 feedback form and, if you have passed, takes the provisional licence so a full one can be posted out. The pass standard is fixed nationally, 15 driving faults maximum and zero serious or dangerous faults, and 45.6% of candidates here meet it under current DVSA marking.
Frequently asked questions
What is the pass rate at Basildon?
Is Basildon an easy or hard test centre?
How does Basildon compare to the UK average?
How many tests are taken at Basildon each year?
Which driving test centres are near Basildon?
When is the best time to book a test at Basildon?
How do I book a test at Basildon and what do I need?
How long is the wait for a driving test at Basildon?
Data: DVSA quarterly statistical release, released under the Open Government Licence v3.0. PassRates.uk aggregates DVSA centre-level totals across reporting periods.
Edited by Vikas. DVSA data period: 2024-25.