There have been concerns the cost of attaining a licence is prohibitive for young drivers. Photo / File
The Government has disputed the cost of getting a car licence, saying the fee is $338.20.
Cost has been a sticking point in this driver debate, with Napier Mayor Bill Dalton saying the price of getting a licence now was ridiculous because it had been handed over to private enterprise.
"The private enterprise is there to make a dollar out of it so the people get rejected or get failed virtually every time the first time they go," he said.
Read more: Youth on the road to independence
Help on offer to get behind wheel
However Associate Transport Minister Craig Foss says the above figure covers all three stages: learner, restricted and full.
"The Government does not 'make money' on this - the fees are set on a cost recovery basis," he said. A NZTA spokesperson also said driver licensing and testing fees were set on the basis of cost recovery.
Licensing agencies however do make a profit from transactions.
NZTA media manager Andy Knackstedt said the agency understands the importance of gaining a licence for a young person's freedom, independence and employment prospects. "We also understand that the process of gaining a licence can be stressful and that the costs of gaining a licence are significant," he said. "But it is important to remember the underlying reason why more challenging practical driving tests were introduced across New Zealand three-and-a-half years ago."
Mr Knackstedt also disputed figures reported by school student Emily Pattullo, who is 16 years old and still on a learner's licence.
Emily said she has attempted the test to get her restricted licence twice. Twice she has failed.
"It has cost me $600 so far and I haven't passed," she said then.
However, Mr Knackstedt said the actual fees incurred for this situation described above would be $315.30 - learner licence application fee - $48.20, learner licence test fee $45.70, restricted licence application fee - $48.20, restricted licence test fee - $86.60 (x2). He said that this would come to a total of $315.30.
"For a full licence test the application fee is $49.60, and the test fee is $59.90.
"So an applicant who doesn't pass the full licence test the first time around would pay another $59.90 to re-sit."
He said in order to spend $800 on licensing fees an applicant would have to fail the full licence test eight times, or fail the restricted test five times.
Mr Knackstedt said the average pass rate for practical testing for the year to date in 2015 is 60 per cent for the Class 1 restricted test and 69 per cent for the Class 1 full test.
Figures released by NZTA under the Official Information Act showed last year alone almost a thousand people failed their restricted licence test in Hawke's Bay.
In the same period 665 motorists failed their full licence test.
If a driver fails their practical test they have to pay the cost again for a re-sit; putting those who are sitting their restricted $86.60 out of pocket, and costing those sitting their full another $59.90.
Cost of a licence
According to the New Zealand Transport Association the minimum amount someone has to pay to get their full class 1 (car) licence is $338.30.
Breaking this figure down, it costs $45.70 to sit the 35-question learner's test.
The restricted practical test costs $86.60, while the full practical licence test costs $59.90.
The NZTA website also notes that each stage also has respective application fee, which does not need to be paid again if the test is failed.
This costs $48.20 for learners and restricted tests, and $49.60 for the full licence test.
In total, a learners licence will cost $93.90, a restricted $134.80, and a full $109.50.
What these figures do not include is the cost to travel to the venue to take the tests, the Official New Zealand Road Code (AA charges $25.50 for the book), and other associated costs such as driving lessons.
If someone has booked a test and fails to show, or uses a car for the practical tests that is not roadworthy, the test is cancelled.
The test must be re-booked, and repaid.