Switch to electric vehicles fuelling increase, says AA Driving School
Experts at the AA Driving School are predicting that more than 25% of practical driving test passes will be in automatic vehicles by 2026. They add the increase is being fuelled by the switch to electric vehicles.
The Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has released data showing 17% of all passes are in an automatic compared with 13.4% the previous year. The figures show that ten years ago, there were just 5% were undertaken in an automatic.
‘As EVs and hybrids become more popular due to lower day-to-day running costs and as the impending ban on sales of new petrol and diesel cars gets closer, more people are choosing to learn in an automatic,’ explains Camilla Benitz, Managing Director, AA Driving School.
‘As more people become confident with the idea of their driving future being electric, the idea of needing to drive a manual vehicle will feel irrelevant to many.’
‘Indeed, we see many are already choosing to not only learn in an automatic, but to learn in an electric vehicle.’
‘We see this trend continuing and the need for manual tuition declining, though manual licences will remain important for some drivers as they will want the option to drive a larger variety of vehicles.’
‘Pre-pandemic more females than males took automatic tests, but we are now seeing male numbers increase and expect that trend to continue at a faster pace than before due to more automatic vehicles being available and more people buying EVs and hybrids.’
Older learners more likely to have lessons in an automatic
AA Driving School data also shows older learners are more likely to have lessons in an automatic than younger learners.
Experts say there can be many reasons for why pupils opt for learning in an automatic – including the perception it is simpler as there are no gears or clutch to master.
They are keen to point out that this preconception isn’t replicated in pass rates as test successes in an automatic is around six percent lower than manual.
They add that the difference in pass rates may be because automatic pupils develop the basic skills sooner and take their test before they are totally ready.
The industry says it’s likely the automatic numbers will increase further and faster after the 2035 ban on new petrol and diesel sales.
As EVs are automatic the need to learn in a manual vehicle will decrease and we should see automatic rates comfortably overtake manual.
The number of people training to be an instructor in an automatic has also risen. In 2023, 37% of those learning to be a driving instructor with the AA chose an automatic vehicle. Automatic driving tests were first introduced 55 years ago.
