Police should take over drivers’ licence testing

The police should take control of issuing drivers’ licences, says the car review website dogandlemon.com

Editor Clive Matthew-Wilson, who is an outspoken road safety campaigner, says:

“From the moment that the issuing of driving licenses was privatised, there have been a steady stream of credible complaints about corruption and incompetence from both instructors and testers.”

Matthew-Wilson was commenting after a national investigation was launched over allegations that a Masterton driver testing officer failed a candidate and then referred him to a commercial driving instructor. After a single lesson from this driving instructor, the candidate was then passed immediately.

“The current testing regime replaced a system that generally worked well, and which enjoyed the confidence of most Kiwi motorists.”

“Many older New Zealanders fondly remember the patient old policeman who took them for their driver’s license test. These old coppers were only interested in whether or not you were a safe driver. They didn’t overcharge you, they didn’t try and get you to use their mate’s driving school, and they didn’t refuse to let you take the test if the vehicle had some minor problem,”

“The commercialised issuing of drivers’ licences has become expensive, bureaucratic, incompetent and corrupt. The only way the government can restore public confidence in this system is to place it back under the control of the police.”

“Supervising driving tests would be a perfect job for retired or semi-retired policemen. Where that’s not practical, and an independent contractor is used, the contractor should be strictly supervised by the police.”

• New Zealand driver's licences are officially issued by the New Zealand Transport Agency, which contracts out this service to a number of enterprises. Before 1992, the Ministry of Transport was responsible for issuing licences. which were often issued by local bodies, but supervised by the MOT’s own traffic police. The MOT’s traffic police were merged into the NZ police department in 1992, and the supervision of driver licencing passed to the NZTA.

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