The DSA's monopoly means it has a duty to take care of businesses'
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g n behalf of my company I am
complaining in the strongest possible terms about the decision by the Driving Standards Agency to abolish block bookings for LGV tests.
Under the current system a regular slot is available to us to offer our clients. This facility is now being withdrawn despite the fact that it can only benefit the customers. Tests are paid for one calendar month in advance of booking and each of our sites, in common with most other training establishments in Britain, has a day set aside for driver testing. This leaves a further six days uninterrupted for providing our services to the consumer. It is not conceivable to disrupt training programmes by having odd tests at odd times on odd days. Less training, resulting in the purchase of fewer tests, will be the eventual outcome of this policy. Ida not believe that it is in the interest of trainee drivers to restrict the amount of driving tests by such a devious method or to curb the growth of commercial businesses which will be the outcome in our case—and we assume likewise in the case of other companies.
It is wrong that the DSA can restrict the number of tests that any individual or company buys—thus affecting their commercial viability. While experiencing the worst recession For many years it cannot be in the country's interest to restrict any form of enterprise, especially in the case of an industry which is training for jobs. The most unacceptable fact that this industry has to face is that the DSA has a monopoly on driver testing. It is impossible For any individual or business to seek an alternative for their clients. It is blotantly obvious that the ending of block bookings restricts the way such businesses operate and takes everyday management out of the hands of the members of these companies and places their Future in the hands of civil servants who, no matter how well intentioned, cannot begin to understand how an individual company or business is operated. My company operates six depots with two more proposed for 1994 and four for 1995. There is no way a business can operate on the scale that we intend to, if this legislation comes into force on 1 October. The DSA's monopoly means it has a duty to take care of established businesses. If there have been instances of the block booking system being abused the right thing to do would be to punish the abuser and not the decent user.