From early 2026, your driving theory test will include something new: questions on CPR and how to use a defibrillator.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) says the change is vital because drivers are often the first people on the scene when someone has a cardiac arrest. The questions will cover basic CPR steps and how to operate a defibrillator, and the info’s already in DVSA learning materials. If you’re planning to take your theory test in 2026, you can start prepping for them now.
The push for this change came from Professor Len Nokes, medical director at Cardiff City FC and chair of Save a Life Cymru. In 2017, his young daughter, Claire, died after a cardiac arrest. He believes basic CPR knowledge could save lives: “When Claire, my daughter, had her cardiac arrest, some knowledge of CPR might have made a difference.”
“[We] hope that by making CPR and how to use a defibrillator part of the theory test, we will be able to significantly increase the number of people who have this life-saving awareness.”
Right now, the theory test has 50 multiple-choice questions in 57 minutes, plus a hazard perception section. You’ll need at least 43/50 in the questions and 44/75 in hazard perception to pass.
The practical test also saw changes earlier in 2025, with fewer stops (especially emergency stops) and more focus on following sat-nav directions.
Unfortunately, waiting times are still long. In May 2025, the AA found the average wait was 21.9 weeks, with 80% of test centres at over five months. The Government is funding extra test slots to bring that down, but for now, learners are still stuck in queues.
Emma Bush from the AA Driving School says the industry’s slowly recovering: “There are signs of recovery, putting both the industry and learners on tenterhooks for more signs of improvement in the coming months.”
