Paul Haines v Registrar for Approved Driving Instructors

This is an appeal against a decision of the Registrar of Approved Driving Instructors (‘the Registrar’), made on 8th October 2025, to refuse to grant the Appellant a third trainee licence.

The Appellant appeared at the hearing. The Respondent did not appear and was not represented.

The Respondent was aware of the hearing date and had confirmed that he would not attend.

Rule 36 of the Tribunal Procedure (First-tier Tribunal) (General Regulatory Chamber) Rules 2009 allows the Tribunal to continue in the absence of a party if it is satisfied that the party has been notified of the hearing or that reasonable steps have been taken to notify the party, and it is in the interests of justice to do so.

I took account of the overriding objective and was satisfied that it was in the interests of justice to proceed.

The grant of a trainee licence enables applicants to provide instruction for payment before they are qualified.

A trainee licence may be granted in the circumstances set out in s. 129 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 (‘the Act’) and the Motor Cars (Driving Instruction) Regulations 2005.

A licence under section 129(1) of the Act is granted: ‘for the purpose of enabling a person to acquire practical experience in giving instruction in driving motor cars with a view to undergoing such part of the examination... as consists of a practical test of ability and fitness to instruct.’

In order to qualify as an Approved Driving Instructor, applicants must pass the Qualifying Examination. This comprises: the written examination (‘Part 1’); the driving ability and fitness test (‘Part 2’); and the instructional ability and fitness test (‘Part 3’).

Three attempts are permitted at each part. The final Part 3 test, must be booked within 2 years of passing Part 1. If it is not passed, the whole Qualifying Examination has to be retaken.

If a candidate has passed Part 2, they may be granted a trainee licence. The grant of a trainee licence enables applicants to provide instruction for payment before they are qualified. It is possible to qualify as an Approved Driving Instructor without having held a trainee licence.

The powers of the Tribunal in determining this appeal are set out in s.131 of the Act. The Tribunal may make such order as it thinks fit.

When making its Decision, the Tribunal stands in the shoes of the Registrar and takes a fresh decision on the evidence available to it, giving appropriate weight to the Registrar’s decision as the person tasked by Parliament with making such decisions.

The burden of proof in satisfying the Tribunal that the Registrar’s decision was wrong rests with the Appellant.

The Appellant passed Part 1 of the Qualifying Examination on 2nd May 2024 and Part 2 on 4th July 2024.

The Appellant has previously had the benefit of two trainee licences, the latter valid from 23rd September 2024 to 22nd September 2024. He had previously been granted a licence which was valid from 29th January 2023 to 28th January 2024.

On 2nd April 2025 the Appellant failed his first attempt at the part 3 test.

On 3rd September 2025 the Appellant applied for a third trainee licence. This application was therefore made before the expiry of the second trainee license. His license is extended to the date of this decision by virtue of that application.

On 4th October 2025 the Appellant was informed, by the Respondent, that he was considering refusing the application and invited to make representations.

The Appellant made representations to the Respondent on 17th September 2025. He set out some detail of his health conditions and stated that he was now much better and felt well enough to focus on his training.

The application was refused on 8th October 2025.

The reasons for the Respondent’s decision, in summary, were that the Appellant had not provided evidence of lost training time.

On 15th December 2025 the Appellant failed his second attempt at the part 3 test.

In his oral submissions, the Appellant told the Tribunal that he has not yet booked a further part 3 test. He was awaiting the decision of the Tribunal.

The Appellant filed an appeal against the decision of the Respondent on 20th October 2025.

The grounds of appeal were, in summary, that health issues had historically prevented him from engaging with training but that, following a change in his treatment plan, he felt both mentally and physically capable of continuing with his training.

The Respondent, in his response, stated:

I read and took account of a bundle of documents prepared by the Respondent.

I heard evidence from the Appellant, who told me that:

I may overturn the decision of the Respondent if I am of the opinion that it was wrong. The burden is on the Appellant to show this.

I accept the evidence of the Appellant with regard to his health issues. I note, however, that he referred to his catheter having already been fitted in his appeal form submitted in October and yet he told me today that the catheter was fitted “about two months ago”. This is inconsistent. Notwithstanding that, I accept that the catheter has made a significant difference to the Appellant’s ability to provide training.

I note that the Appellant has already had the benefit of trainee licences from January 2023 to January 2024 and from 23rd September 2024 to today. This has given him two years and six months in which to offer paid training. His health issues, he told me, began in the summer of 2024, which would have been around the time of his applying for his second license.

The Appellant has provided me with evidence which was not available to the Registrar and which persuades me that the decision of the Registrar was wrong.

I allow the appeal accordingly. The trainee license shall be extended for six months from the date of this decision.