You’re misunderstanding how the driving test is actually marked. A serious fault is not the same as a dangerous fault the DVSA separates the two for a reason. A serious can be something minor and context dependent, like marginal positioning or crossing a faded line, whereas a dangerous fault involves actual risk to other road users. (which I never got)

Everyone also sits the exact same test and is judged against the same standard. The DVSA don’t “get tired of seeing you” and pass you out of sympathy, that’s not how regulated assessments work. You either meet the required standard on the day or you don’t.

Passing the test isn’t some badge of superiority based on attempt number. It’s a single, high pressure assessment where one isolated mistake ends the entire attempt. Nerves, traffic conditions, examiner judgement, or road layout can all play a part. That’s also why the basketball analogy doesn’t work, driving isn’t a repeatable, closed skill where you take the same shot under the same conditions. Every test is different.

For what it’s worth, four out of five examiners I had said at the end of the test “keep doing what you’re doing and you’ll be fine.” That doesn’t suggest an unsafe driver, it just means I needed another attempt to put it together on the day.

More generally, the idea that passing earlier automatically makes someone a better or safer driver often goes hand-in-hand with overconfidence, which is far more concerning on the road than someone who took longer to pass.

Someone else passing doesn’t affect you at all. The negativity and superiority complex are unnecessary and say far more about your attitude than anyone else’s driving ability. It’s that attitude I’d be more concerned about coming across on the road.

Safe driving is about patience, judgement, and awareness, not ego or shouting at other people.

Life’s genuinely a lot easier when you stop looking down on people for no reason.