Kent HGV training price report, October 2026
What it costs to get a lorry licence in Kent, compared like for like across 30 training providers and brokers, with the DVSA fees, the medical, pass rates and the cost of retests and finance.
Key findings
- A Class 2 licence from a Kent provider costs £1,373 to £3,272 all in, with a middle of £1,897. "All in" includes the medical, theory and Driver CPC tests and DVSA test fees, whether or not the advertised price does.
- Courses give 15 to 24 hours in the cab. The middle all-in cost is £108 per hour of driving, from £86 to £136 per hour.
- Going straight from a car licence to Class 1 costs £2,944 all in at the middle of the Kent market (£2,273 to £3,992), for 24 to 35 cab hours.
- 1 of 15 national training companies and brokers publishes a course price. 9 of 11 Kent providers do.
- 7 of 44 published Kent course prices don't say how many hours you'll drive, the number that decides whether a price is good value.
- DVSA test fees for Class 2 total £270 on a weekday, the same with every provider. A D4 medical costs £45 to £66 at Kent clinics and providers.
- 58.3% of on-road lorry tests at Gillingham LGV were passes in 2025 to 2026, against 60.7% across Great Britain. It's the only DVSA lorry test centre in Kent.
- A retest costs £427 to £495 at the Kent schools that publish one. Pass protection costs £380 to £499 up front.
- Finance can add more than half to the price. At the 29.9% representative APR common in HGV training, £3,000 over 4 years costs about £4,892 in total.
Kent prices by course
Middle (median) values across every published option from providers with a training yard in Kent.
| Course | Options | Cab hours | Cheapest advertised | All in, middle | All in, range | Per cab hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class 2 (Cat C) | 12 | 15–24 | £1,200 | £1,897 | £1,373–£3,272 | £108 |
| Class 1 upgrade (C+E) | 10 | 15–21 | £1,500 | £1,891 | £1,505–£2,335 | £104 |
| Car to Class 1 (C+E) | 14 | 24–35 | £2,100 | £2,944 | £2,273–£3,992 | £110 |
| 7.5 tonne (C1) | 8 | 10–14 | £650 | £970 | £745–£1,490 | £78 |
Fixed costs every learner pays
| Cost | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| DVSA test fees, Class 2, weekday | £270 | GOV.UK |
| D4 medical, Kent | £45–£66 | Kent clinic prices |
| Provisional lorry licence | Free | GOV.UK |
| Driver CPC card (UK licence) | Free | GOV.UK |
| First digital tachograph card | £32 | GOV.UK |
How the figures were gathered
Every price comes from the provider's own website, checked on 17 October 2026, with the page it came from. Where a price leaves out the medical, theory tests, Driver CPC tests or DVSA test fees, we add them at their standard cost to give an all-in figure, then divide by the cab hours the provider states. Kent figures use only providers with a training yard or test site in Kent. Full method.
Data and reuse
The full dataset is free to download as CSV or JSON, under a CC BY 4.0 licence. Please cite it as: Driver Training Info, Kent HGV training price report, October 2026, with a link to this page. For questions or corrections, email hello@drivertraininginfo.co.uk.
Related: every Kent price, provider by provider; Kent test centre pass rates; what providers' refund terms say.