Administrative / Public Law · First-tier Tribunal (General Regulatory Chamber)
Paul Hepworth v The Registrar of Approved Driving Instructors
Checked against the judgment on 22 September 2026 · how we verify
Facts
The appellant, Paul Hepworth, appealed to the First-tier Tribunal (General Regulatory Chamber) against the Registrar of Approved Driving Instructors about the appellant's application for a third trainee licence. The judgment does not describe the Registrar's decision on that application in any more detail. Under Regulation 14(b) of the Motor Cars (Driving Instruction) Regulations 2025, a trainee licence remains in force until the day immediately after the trainee's third unsuccessful attempt at the instructional ability test. In a form GRC5 dated 19 August 2026, the Registrar told the Tribunal that the appellant had failed a third attempt at that test on 18 August 2026. The Registrar argued that the appeal must therefore fail, because the appellant was no longer eligible to hold a trainee licence, and applied for the appeal to be struck out. On 1 September 2026 the Tribunal directed the appellant to make any submissions by 15 September on why the appeal should not be struck out. The appellant did not respond. The strike-out application was decided without a hearing.
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