PEOPLE are coming from all over the country to sit their driving test in Malton - because it is seen as an easy pass, Ryedale driving instructors have said.

Last week a study by Admiral insurance company’s Veygo magazine found that Malton has the highest driving test pass rate of any test centre in England - and the eighth highest in the whole of the UK.

The study, which analysed pass rates from each of the UK’s 345 test centres using data from the DVLA, found that the Malton test centre’s pass rate of 70.2 per cent soars well above the UK national average - which is 49.9 per cent.

The test centres with the lowest number of passes were mostly in large urban centres. Yeading in London has a pass rate of just 20 per cent, according to the research.

Indeed, apart from Malton, every other test centre in the top 10 top-scoring centres was in Scotland.

Now Malcolm Pearson, who has been a driving instructor in Ryedale for 20 years, has revealed that people want to come from far and wide to sit their test here.

“The pass rate for Malton has just gone up and up,” he said. “I get a lot of people ringing from out of the area - Leeds, Bradford, Manchester, even London. It’s happening more and more.”

He said that these learners are just after use of his vehicle for a test - but that their attempts are misguided. “You’ve got to know the area,” he said. “The test isn’t easy no matter where you take it.”

Colin Pape, who established his driving school in 2000, said that this month alone he has had people call from London, Peterborough, Bradford and Sheffield.

He said they are normally struggling to pass where they are, often having failed a number of times, and have gone online to find centres with a high pass rate. They ask for a couple of lessons and the test the next day.

But he also said that he turns them down. “They’re going to have to go back there and drive in the area they couldn’t pass in,” he said. “They need more experience where they are.”

He added that some students have said that Malton - with its tight corners and narrow streets - is more difficult to drive in than York.

And the real reason for the high Malton pass rate? Mr Pearson says it’s down to driving instructors with lots of experience in the area.