As of: April 8, 2024, 6:00 a.m
By: Alexandra Anderka
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The driving students are prepared in theory lessons as shown in the picture on the left at the Flittner driving school © Driving School Flittner
Erding - The failure rate in the theory tests for driving licenses is currently at an all-time high, with 42 percent failing across Germany. Driving instructors from Erdinger often overestimate themselves.
Finally no longer having to rely on rides from parents or friends: this is the dream of many young people. But the road to get there is rocky for some: As the TÜV Association reports, there were almost two million Class B theoretical driving tests for the classic car driving license nationwide in 2023 - an increase of 150,000 (eight percent) compared to the previous year. What is alarming, however, is that 42 percent of learner drivers failed the theory test - more than ever before. Bavaria is also at the forefront.
Evi Köllmberger, office manager of the Erdinger driving school Pulstal, which is owned by her husband Markus Köllmberger, confirms this development. She says one of the reasons is that the questionnaire has become more difficult for the examinees over the past ten years due to the large number of video recordings.
Driving students would have to spend significantly more hours learning, but would no longer have the necessary stamina. Some young people also lack motivation. “Why should they get a driving license if their parents drive them everywhere anyway or they get everywhere on an e-scooter, some people think,” Köllmberger has observed recently. 1190 questions would have to be mastered, only 30 would be asked. “Many people rely on gaps.”
“It’s no longer just about learning the questions by heart, they also have to be understood and evaluated correctly,” agrees driving school colleague Christoph Flittner. This is positive for road traffic itself.
Another reason that the failure rate is increasing is the growing number of immigrants, the two experts agree. If you want to have a driving license acquired abroad permanently recognized in Germany, you must have it rewritten. In many cases, driving license holders from non-EU countries have to pass a theoretical and practical test.
However, there are no compulsory hours before the respective tests; applicants decide for themselves whether they are confident enough to take the test - many people overestimate themselves. Köllmberger knows that training material is available in different languages. However, complicated traffic regulations also cause linguistic communication problems. “If the driving instructor says: 'We're following the motorway', it's not that easy for non-native speakers to understand,” says Köllmberger, giving an example.
What is right? Answer a) I have to let the blue truck drive through. b) I have to let the tractor turn. c) The blue truck has to let me pass. Answers a) and b) are correct. 30 such questions have to be answered in a theory test. © Graphic: TÜV/DEKRA
In addition, many immigrants have “completely different driving cultures,” adds Flittner. “If the traffic light is red in our country, that means you have to stop. This is nowhere near the case in other countries. They then don’t understand our traffic rules.” The refugees often come from rural areas where traffic is nowhere near as complex as in this country. “With traffic education and the bicycle license, German children learn the first traffic rules at school,” says Flittner.
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But German driving students also have less experience with road traffic than before. Köllmberger and Flittner share this observation. “Children today are driven everywhere and have less personal traffic experience. And when they sit in the car, they no longer pay as much attention to the traffic and prefer to look at their cell phones,” reports Köllmberger. She encourages parents to do traffic training with their children when registering for a driver's license. This way they would have some control over the costs of their driving license themselves. After all, repeating the theoretical exam costs around 100 euros.
Köllmberger and Flittner appeal to their driving students not to register for the test if the preparation app does not recommend it. Flittner offers an internal preliminary exam and advises not to postpone the preparation, but to learn in parallel to the theory lessons. “Because then you can ask the driving instructor questions if you don’t understand something.”
Köllmberger is sure: “The test is possible for everyone. Some people have to learn more, others less, but everyone has to do something.” Flittner guarantees his students: “If the learning app is green, the examinee is ready for the test. If he still fails, he doesn't have to pay the fee for the re-examination." He wants to prevent students from registering for the exam too quickly, even though their app initially shows a success rate of 40 percent - which he often notices. Students should also watch their parents while driving and ask them about traffic rules instead of looking at their cell phones. After all, the best way to learn is through practice.