Rushpal Singh v The Registrar of Approved Driving Instructors

1. The appellant appeals against the decision made by the Registrar of Approved Driving Instructors (the Registrar) on 29 October 2025 to refuse his application for a second trainee licence.

2. The appellant had been granted a previous trainee licence. This was valid from 7 April 2025 to 6 October 2025. On 15 September 2025 the appellant applied for a second trainee licence.

3. On 1 October 2025 the Registrar notified the appellant that consideration was being given to refusing his application. He was invited to make representations.

4. The appellant responded by email on 9 October 2025. He stated that he has completed some of the additional training and has additional sessions booked. He also stated that that he had experienced difficulties in obtaining a Part 3 test date.

5. The Registrar gave the following reasons for the decision made on 29 October: a. The appellant failed to comply with the conditions of his trainee licence having not completed or provided evidence of additional training. b. The appellant had the benefit of a previous training licence for a period of 6 months, which is considered more than adequate time to gain sufficient experience to pass a Part 3 test. c. Parliament’s intention was not to licence candidates for as long as it takes them to pass the examination. d. The trainee licence must not become an alternative to registration as a fully qualified Approved Driving Instructor (ADI) e. It is not necessary to hold a trainee licence in order to sit the part 3 test.

6. The appellant lodged a notice of appeal dated 10 November 2025. In his notice of appeal, the appellant stated that the test date was beyond the six-month period of his trainee licence and he had a part 3 test booked for 21 November 2025 which the Registrar failed to take into account. He stated that he had arranged his training to be nearer the date of the test and had completed it.

7. The Registrar in its response dated 5 February 2026 reiterated the above reasons for refusal. In addition, it noted that the appellant had failed to return training record form ADI 21AT providing evidence of the mandatory additional training being completed. The hearing

8. Neither the Appellant nor the Respondent attended the hearing on 20 March 2026 at 12pm and no notification of absence or reason for not attending was provided by either party. The Tribunal clerk attempted to contact the Appellant by telephone twice, leaving messages, but there was no answer or response to messages. I considered it was in the interests of justice to proceed without the parties being present because a full bundle had been provided including evidence from both parties, so determined the appeal without hearing from the parties. The legal framework

9. The circumstances in which a person may be granted a trainee licence are set out in Section 129 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 ( the Act ) and the Motor Cars (Driving Instruction) Regulations 2005 (the Regulations).

10. The appellant’s right of appeal and the powers of the Tribunal to determine this appeal are set out in s.131 of the Act . The Tribunal will make a fresh decision on the evidence before it and may make such order as it thinks fit.

11. It is for the appellant to show on balance of probabilities that the Registrar’s decision was wrong. Discussion and conclusion

12. The essence of the Registrar’s decision is that the appellant has failed to comply with the conditions of his trainee licence. Moreover, the appellant has been provided, under his previous licence, with more than adequate time to sit the required tests to become an ADI. The appellant has already had one trainee and because the application for his second licence was made before the expiry of his first licence, he has had the benefit of a continuing licence while his appeal has been pending, which has been valid for an additional 5 months. The appellant can continue to provide instruction, so long as it is without payment, if he considers that he needs further experience before sitting the test. He can also sit the part 3 test without a current trainee licence.

13. In reaching its decision, the Tribunal has taken into account all the evidence submitted to it and considered all the circumstances relevant to this appeal.

14. In all the circumstances, the Tribunal finds that the appellant has not persuaded it that the Registrar’s decision was wrong in any way and accordingly dismisses the appeal.