Cardigan Driving Test Centre
Cardigan in Aberteifi / Cardigan, Wales has a current pass rate of 49.8%, 1.1 points above the UK average of 48.7%. This page breaks down the multi-year trend, the first-time and gender pass rates, the waiting time and how it compares with the rest of the UK, all from the DVSA quarterly data.
DVSA data last updated September 2026
Cardigan sits in the bottom half of car pass rates nationally (Bottom 46%, rank #177 of 323). The strongest car alternative nearby is Pwllheli, about 56.5 miles away.
Pass vs fail at a glance
All-time 10.3K passed, 8.4K failed, 18.7K total
How Cardigan compares
Cardigan sits 1.1 points above the UK average, ranked 177 of 323 in its category: close enough that centre choice matters far less than preparation.
Where Cardigan ranks among 323 centres
Pass-rate trend by year
Cardigan has given up 6.1 points since 2017-18 (55.9% then, 49.8% now); the low water mark was 49.7% in 2019-20.
Pass rate by demographic
Waiting time at Cardigan
Official DVSA data, August 2026. The median is the time between booking and taking the test; for live availability use the DVSA booking service.
Centre details
Address
Source: DVSA find a driving test centre (Open Government Licence v3.0), captured 2026-05-12.
Tests offered at Cardigan
- car
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 SA43 1ED, or call DVSA Customer Services on 0300 200 1122.
About this test centre
Cardigan is in Aberteifi / Cardigan, Ceredigion (SA43 1JR) and runs DVSA car tests for learners across the local area. Your examiner picks the route on the day without telling you which, and the DVSA does not publish them. 18.7K tests across 2017-18-2024-25. That's a working sample, enough to take the pass rate at face value but not so large that a single quiet quarter passes unnoticed.
Out of 323 UK car test centres, Cardigan ranks 177, which lands it in the lower half nationally. The 49.8% pass rate is 1.1 points above the UK figure of 48.7%. The first-time pass figure here is 50.9%, which lines up almost exactly with the UK average of 49%. If you're a first-timer, the centre is neither lucky nor unlucky ground, it's average.
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 Cardigan
- Pass rate at Cardigan sits close to the UK average. Prepare for an ordinary level of difficulty: examiners apply the standard DVSA marking sheet, and the routes are a representative mix of local conditions.
- Practising the roads around the centre is the preparation that most reliably pays off. Most ADI instructors in Aberteifi / Cardigan will know the road types and junctions learners commonly meet near the centre.
- Don't pay third-party sites for booking access at Cardigan. Use gov.uk/book-driving-test directly; cancellations show up on the same booking flow.
Whether you pass at Cardigan is not decided by the centre. It is decided by the 15 things an examiner can mark you on, and move off, safety is one of the ones that ends attempts early.
DVSA publishes all 21 vehicle safety questions in advance, 14 tell me and 7 show me. You get 2 of them on the day, one at the roadside and one while you are driving. Get one wrong or both wrong and it counts as one driving fault, not two.
Six-point check on every move-off: left mirror, centre mirror, right mirror, right shoulder, left shoulder, signal. Practise until the sequence is reflexive. Free to use, no sign up. Everything for the day itself is on the practical test hub.
Other test centres nearby
You cannot book a practical test at Cardigan until you hold a theory pass, and it has to still be valid on the day you sit it. Nationally 44.8% of candidates pass the theory.
Loads, roof racks, towing and keeping the vehicle stable and legal. All 14 DVSA topics are free to practise, with no sign up. See the theory pass rate by centre or the full practice hub.
On the day at Cardigan
Ten minutes early is the right target at Cardigan. Parking differs between DVSA centres, so it pays to scout the route on the DVSA centre finder (postcode SA43 1JR) the day before. Demand sits at moderate with a modelled wait of about 7 to 11 weeks, which generally leaves more room to choose a date. Bring the provisional photocard licence, the examiner checks for it first, and make sure your car is roadworthy with L plates and a working interior mirror. If Carmarthen is fully booked, Cardigan is the next closest centre, roughly 21 miles away.
Plan for a drive of roughly 40 minutes, identical in structure to every other DVSA centre. First comes the 20-metre eyesight check and a tell-me vehicle-safety question, then the examiner joins you for the road section, with one show-me question while you drive. About 20 minutes is independent driving by sat nav or by following signs to a named target, you tackle one of four set manoeuvres, and around one in seven candidates get an emergency stop. The drive covers the local mix of road types within roughly a twenty-minute radius of the centre. Across DVSA marking nationally, the fault recorded most often on car tests is junctions - observation, worth drilling on the local routes before your date.
There is no wait for the verdict, the examiner delivers it at the centre. They go over each fault recorded, hand you the DL25 feedback form, and on a pass retain your provisional licence so the full version arrives by post. To pass you need no more than 15 driving faults and not a single serious or dangerous one; 49.8% of candidates at Cardigan currently clear that.
Frequently asked questions
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Data: DVSA quarterly statistical release, released under the Open Government Licence v3.0. PassRates.uk aggregates DVSA centre-level totals across reporting periods.
DVSA data period: 2024-25.