Instructor left ‘gobsmacked’

Adriving instructor has been left “gobsmacked” after an examiner cancelled his client’s test after deeming the car was not clean enough.

John Giel, who has been a driving instructor for more than 20 years, was left with a client “in tears” after a test was cancelled due to Covid-19 guidelines.

A spokesman for the Dr iver and Ve h ic le Standard Agency (DVSA) would not speak directly about the incident at the test centre in Dundee. However, he did say that “driving tests will not go ahead if (cleanliness) has not been followed.”

Mr Giel said the examiner sat inside his silver Honda Civic Type-R at the test centre on Kilspindie Place and wiped over the passenger door sill before cancelling the test.

Mr Giel added: “What happened on the day was completely unforgiveable. I thought the examiner was joking. The car had been cleaned and disinfected prior to him getting inside.

“He took a wipe across the sill and found a bit of dirt and he also found a piece of grass in the footwell.

“The examiner said it wasn’t to ‘ his standard’, which I thought wa s extremely petty. I said to him ‘ are you seriously going to cancel this test?’

“I could understand if there was food packaging and other items scattered over the vehicle, but his decision left me gobsmacked when he confirmed the test was cancelled.

“When I explained it wasn’t me he was impacting but my client who could now be facing a long wait for another test, it didn’t sway his decision.

“Thankfully, my client was able to get a cancellation and get the test rebooked but it’s beside the point. This never should have happened.”

Mr Giel took the decision to cover his client ’s additional costs as a result of what had taken place.

He added: “It wasn’t fair what had happened to my client so I covered the costs of about £140 for what had happened, but these are costs that should never have been incurred.

“I posted about the incident on social media

and many of my former clients were shocked as they said my car was always clean. It just seemed extremely petty.”

A spokesman for the DVSA said: “DVSA’s priority is to protect our customers and staff and stop the

spread of C ovid -19. Guidance has been issued that cars used on driving tests must be cleaned before the test to lessen the chance of infection. Driving tests will not go ahead if this has not been followed to ensure public safety.”

CANCELLED: John Giel, above, says the test examiner’s decision left his client in tears.