The Road Safety Authority (RSA) said they have recorded half a dozen cases in recent years when they believed a person who turned up to take a driving test was not who they said they were.
The RSA said that in the period since 2021, there had been six cases where there was a “query about the candidate’s identity” and a test did not go ahead as planned.
The authority said there was one suspected case of impersonation in 2021, four in 2022, one last year, and that none have been reported so far in 2024.
They said that in some cases, the candidate may have returned with a secondary form of identity when looking to conduct a repeat test.
In other cases where the person never returned or there was a strong “suspicion that an impersonation was taking place”, gardaí were notified of the RSA’s concerns.
However, the Road Safety Authority said their driver testing service would not be informed of the outcome of the investigation and whether there was a prosecution or conviction.
A copy of the RSA policy on how to deal with cases of impersonation said testers needed to gather as much information as possible while minimising any risk to themselves.
The guidance document, which was released under Freedom of Information laws, said RSA staff should first carefully check and compare photographs and signatures of the candidate.
It said: “The tester should check the security features of the learner permit, and where any feature is obviously absent, the test should not be conducted.”
If they had any doubts, another form of ID card should be looked for but that the test should go ahead unless the staff member is “satisfied beyond reasonable doubt” they are dealing with a fraudster.
The guidance said staff with concerns could also tell a person that a decision on their test had been “deferred” and was being sent to the Road Safety Authority HQ for further examination.
In cases where a tester was certain they were dealing with impersonation, they were recommended to take a photograph of the applicant.
The guidance document also raised the possibility that this could be considered “as routine for all tests?”
It said testers should then look to get the registration number for the car and if the candidate didn’t know, staff members should try to discreetly check it.
The guidance continued: “At the earliest opportunity, ask the applicant to hold on while you check your schedule or some similar statement that is not likely to arouse suspicion.
“The tester should immediately contact the local garda station, explaining that their presence is required as soon as possible due to the suspected fraudulent use of a learner permit.”
It said staff members could also stall by asking a candidate to go ahead to their vehicle to open the bonnet which would “allow time to ring the gardaí”.
However, the guidance said testers needed always to be conscious of “minimising risks” to themselves if they were worried.
