Lochgilphead driving test centre
Lochgilphead Community Centre, Manse Brae, Lochgilphead, Argyll and Bute, PA31 8QX
A swap only works when one of you moves forward and the other moves back, so the date somebody cannot use is worth as much as the date somebody wants. DVSA will exchange the two bookings over the phone, free. What they will not do is put the two of you in touch, and that is the part this page is for. Not ready for your Lochgilphead date? How to postpone it without losing the fee.
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Tell us where your test is booked and which way you want to move it. When a learner who could swap with you joins, we email you. Your email is never shown to anyone.
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No test booked yet? There is nothing to swap until you have one. Book on GOV.UK, then come back.
Lochgilphead in numbers
56.4% of car tests at Lochgilphead end in a pass, 6.4 points above the national average of 50%. Within Scotland it ranks 44th of 74. It is a small centre by national standards, at roughly 3 car tests a week, so swaps here depend on catching the right person rather than on volume. The rate has moved noticeably too: down 6.1 points on the year before (62.5%).
Pass rate
Above average- Passed here
- 56.4%140 tests, Apr 2025 to Mar 2026
- National average
- 50%same period
- On last year
- -6.1points down (62.5% the year before)
Waiting time
Longer than most- Median wait
- 23.1 weeks10.7 weeks longer than the national median of 12.4
- Still free to book
- 0%of the next 24 weeks
- Already taken
- 32of 32 slots in that window
Centres you can swap with from Lochgilphead
GOV.UK allows a swap with a learner booked at the same centre as you, at one of your three nearest, or at a centre you first booked at. Three nearest is measured by driving distance avoiding motorways, and DVSA publishes the list. A swap moves both learners, so the condition has to hold from each side, and the centres below are the ones that work in both directions from Lochgilphead. Anywhere else is refused on the call.
The four rules, applied here
You both need a change left
Two changes per car test, and a swap spends one of them. How changing a test works.
10 working days' notice
To whichever of the two tests is first. Monday to Saturday count; Sundays and public holidays do not.
Centres near each other
Lochgilphead's own three nearest are Inveraray, Oban, Brodick (Isle of Arran).
Same test type
Weekday with weekday; evening and weekend tests only with each other.
Getting to Lochgilphead, and what to take
Straight from DVSA's own list of test centres. Worth reading the week before rather than the morning of.
Where it is
Lochgilphead Community Centre
Manse Brae
Lochgilphead
Argyll and Bute
PA31 8QX
- No parking listed at the centre, so plan where to leave the car
- Toilets
What to take
- Your UK driving licence. No photocard means a valid passport and your paper licence.
- Your theory test pass certificate if you have it. If it is lost the examiner can look the pass up.
- A car. Most people use their instructor's.
Driving around Lochgilphead before test day
Nobody can give you the examiner's route. DVSA stopped publishing routes in 2010, and four tests in five are led by a sat nav the examiner sets up, so there is no sequence to learn. The roads are a different matter: which roundabout, which multi-lane junction, where the limit changes. Instructors film those, and watching them is the cheapest practice available.
Find Lochgilphead route videos
Swaps at Lochgilphead, month by month
Most people know the month they need rather than the date. Each of these says how much of that month can still be swapped into under the ten working day rule, and which centres a Lochgilphead booking can move to. DVSA releases slots in a rolling 24-week window, so these are the months anybody can be holding a test in.
Three quick questions
One each on the car safety questions, road signs and warning lights: the parts of the test you can learn off the page. Have a guess, then open the answer.
-
Show me, tell me
When is the "show me" question asked?
- While you are driving
- Before you set off, with the bonnet open
- Only if you make a mistake earlier
- At the end of the test, parked
Show the answer
While you are driving. The "tell me" question comes at the start. The "show me" question is asked while you are driving, so it also tests whether you can do it safely on the move.
-
Road signs
What shape are most warning signs?
- An octagon
- A triangle
- A rectangle
- A circle
Show the answer
A triangle. Warning signs are mostly red-bordered triangles, point up.
-
Warning lights
An amber warning light comes on. What does amber generally mean?
- Stop immediately in the road
- Something is switched on
- The car needs fuel
- Have it checked soon; you can usually drive on carefully
Show the answer
Have it checked soon; you can usually drive on carefully. Amber is a fault worth checking soon, such as engine management, ABS or tyre pressure. Read the handbook for your car.
Swapping at Lochgilphead: questions
Can I swap a test at Lochgilphead for one at another centre?
Only if it is the same centre, one of your three nearest, or a centre you first booked at. A swap moves both learners, so it has to work from each side. From Lochgilphead the list is Inveraray, Oban. Anywhere else is refused on the call.
What is the pass rate at Lochgilphead?
56.4% of car tests at Lochgilphead ended in a pass between April 2025 and March 2026, from 140 tests. The national average over the same period was 50%, so Lochgilphead is 6.4 points above it, ranking 94th of 314 centres in Great Britain. These are DVSA's own published figures and they describe the centre, not you.
Which nearby centre has a better pass rate than Lochgilphead?
Of the centres you can legally move a Lochgilphead test to, Inveraray has the highest pass rate at 69.4%, against 56.4% here. That is a difference in the centre, not a promise about your test, and a swap has to suit the other learner too.
How long is the wait for a driving test at Lochgilphead?
23.1 weeks. That is the median wait between booking and taking a test for people who sat one at Lochgilphead in September 2026, from DVSA's own monthly figures, so half of them waited longer. The national median that month was 12.4 weeks. 0% of the slots in DVSA's 24-week booking window here were still free to book. A swap sidesteps that queue entirely, because you are moving into a date another learner has already booked.
How long does it take to find a swap at Lochgilphead?
That depends on how many learners hold a slot here and whether any of them want the opposite of what you want. DVSA runs about 3 car tests a week at Lochgilphead, so the pool holding a slot is small, and patience counts for more here. Join the list at the top of this page and we email you when a learner who could swap with you joins. A three-way chain often resolves faster than waiting for a perfect pair.
Does swapping at Lochgilphead cost anything?
No. You exchange slots rather than rebooking, so you keep your original booking reference and payment. Matching here is free, and DVSA does the swap on the phone at no charge.
How much notice do I need?
At least 10 full working days before whichever of the two tests comes first. Monday to Saturday count as working days; Sundays and public holidays do not, so the real deadline falls earlier than the calendar suggests.
Can my instructor arrange it for me?
No. Since 12 May 2026 only the candidate can book or manage their own test, and that applies to instructors too. Yours can sit next to you while you make the call.
Is this the same as a cancellation app for Lochgilphead?
No. A cancellation app scans the booking service for unclaimed appointments, and since 12 May 2026 learners are not allowed to use services that do that. A swap works the other way round: the date you want is already booked by another learner, the two of you agree to exchange, and you make the call yourself.
Your Lochgilphead date is somebody's dream date
Somewhere there is a learner holding the slot you want, who would rather have yours. Join the list and we email you when a learner who could swap with you joins. Free, no card, nothing to pay when it works.