New figures have exposed a worrying trend for learner drivers in the Australian Capital Territory, with the first-time pass rate for the practical provisional driving test falling dramatically over the past five years.
A Steep Decline in First-Time Success
Data obtained by EzLicence reveals a significant slump in driving test success across the ACT. The first-time pass rate has dropped from 60.8 per cent in 2021 to just 47.7 per cent in 2025. This means fewer than one in two learner drivers now passes the crucial practical test on their initial attempt.
While the trend for first-timers is concerning, the data offers a glimmer of hope for those who persevere. Pass rates show a notable rebound on the second attempt, climbing to 59 per cent in 2025. However, the figures suggest that taking the test three or more times does not significantly improve the odds of success. Only half of all candidates passed on their third try, with the rate dropping to 44 per cent for those requiring four or more attempts.
Why Are Learners Failing?
The data provides a clear breakdown of the most common reasons for failure, highlighting where learner drivers are struggling most.
'Examiner Intervention' remained the leading cause of test failure between 2021 and 2025, accounting for an average of 17.9 per cent of all errors. This occurs when the testing officer must take action to prevent a dangerous situation. Fortunately, the frequency of this error has gradually declined since 2021.
Poor anticipation and judgement proved to be a stubborn hurdle for candidates, responsible for 16.7 per cent of errors. This involves failing to predict the actions of other road users. Like examiner interventions, this category has also seen a decrease over the period.
In contrast, right-of-way violations have become more frequent, consistently ranking as the third-most common reason for failure and growing over the five-year span.
One of the most alarming trends is the rise in speeding violations among ACT learners. The rate of speeding errors grew from 8.1 per cent in 2021 to 12.5 per cent in 2025.
Ingrained Habits vs. Simple Mistakes
The analysis reveals a critical distinction between errors that are easily corrected and those that become ingrained habits.
Errors involving red lights, mirror use, and collisions proved the hardest to shake. These high-risk behaviours appeared frequently among repeat test-takers, suggesting they are deep-seated habits rather than one-off mistakes.
On a more positive note, technical control errors—such as poor steering or clutch control—dominated first attempts at 84.4 per cent but dropped by over 70 per cent by the second attempt. This indicates that learners quickly master basic vehicle handling.
Similarly, decision-making lapses like right-of-way and anticipation errors mostly appeared on the first attempt and were resolved quickly in later tests.
The data paints a clear picture: while fundamental car control is learned rapidly, safety-critical habits and judgement require significantly more time and practice to correct. The shift in failure reasons away from technical skills and towards behavioural and judgement errors marks a significant challenge for both learners and instructors in the ACT.
