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27th Mar 2023

Woman passes her driving test on her 960th go after spending £11,000

Steve Hopkins

‘I wouldn’t want someone who has failed over 5 times to be on the same road as me’

A South Korean woman finally passed her driving test – on her 960th attempt.

It meant Cha Sa-soon spent £11,000 securing permission to drive.

The 69-year-old first attempted the written test in April 2005 and after failing continued to retake it every day, five days a week, for three years – making 780 attempts.

She then switched to taking the test twice a week until she finally passed – and moved on to the next stage. The practical test.

That only took her 10 times to pass.

However, it meant it took her 960 tests to get her licence, the Mirror noted.

Cha refused to give up as she reportedly needed a licence for her vegetable-selling business.

Her driving instructor at Jeonbuk Driving School said he felt relieved when Cha Sa-soon finally got the licence, the newspaper reported.

He said: “When she finally got her licence, we all went out cheering and hugged her, giving her flowers.”

“It felt like a huge burden falling off our backs. We hadn’t had the guts to tell her to quit because she kept showing up.”

Cha reportedly became a celebrity and appeared in a Hyundai advert, over her attempts to get a licence, and was even gifted a new car worth over £11,500.

Cha’s remarkable journey to get a driving licence, resurfaced on Reddit this week. It happened over 15 years ago.

One commenter wrote: “I wouldn’t want someone who has failed over 5 times to be on the same road as me, not to mention 960.”

Another added: “I personally believe if you fail your driving test, or any part of your driving test, more than 10 times, you should never be allowed to drive.”