3 days ago
Major change to driving tests that impacts ALL learners to be rolled out in months – what it means for you
A MAJOR change to driving tests will impact all learners across the UK and is set to be rolled out in just months.
Learner drivers sitting their driving theory test will soon need to brush up on their CPR skills in an effort to save thousands of lives every year.
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Driving theory tests will include added questions on CPR and defibrillators from early next year, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has said.
Theory test questions will be expanded to include "enhanced" CPR content.
While questions on external defibrillators, or AEDs, will be added for the first time.
Theory test candidates will therefore need to brush up on their CPR techniques including proper placement and compression rates as well as how to use an AED.
The changes are a bid to ensure drivers know how how to use a defibrillator and how to respond in emergencies.
It is hoped that new learners will be equipped with life-saving skills through the enhanced questions with 2.4 million theory tests taken each year.
For example, one new theory test question relates to the correct depth to push down during CPR.
Mark Winn, DVSA Chief Driving Examiner, said: "Part of being a safe and responsible driver is knowing what to do in an emergency – how to step in and make a real, life-saving difference.
"Learning CPR and how to use an AED is a very simple skill and adding this into the official learning resource is a great way for DVSA to support the drive to raise awareness."
According to the DVSA, drivers are often first on the scene when someone suffers a cardiac arrest.
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More than 40,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests occur every year in the UK but fewer than 1 in 10 people survive.
But if CPR is administered and an AED used within 3 to 5 minutes of collapse, survival rates can reach as high as 70 per cent.
Otherwise, every minute that passes reduces those chances by up to 10 per cent.
Life-saving CPR skills may be required in a range of scenarios on the road.
Trauma or shock resulting from a collision could cause a cardiac arrest or a driver could have a cardiac arrest behind the wheel causing a road traffic incident.
Motorists may also be required in roadside emergencies if someone has collapsed on the roadside.
For example, runners may experience a sudden cardiac arrest and elderly people or those with heart conditions could also collapse in public spaces.
And incidents could also occur at service areas including motorway services, petrol stations and car parks
Intervention can be crucial to saving lives before professional help arrives on the scene.
The theory test changes are a result of collaboration between the DVSA and organisations such as Save a Life programmes in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland in addition to Resuscitation Council UK.
Learner drivers must first take a theory test and hazard perception test before they can book their practical driving test.
To pass the theory test, learners must achieve 43 out of 50 correct answers.
The DVSA also announced in May that three major practical driving test changes were to be trialled across the UK to speed up exams for thousands of learners.
