Social media use
Information about the social media channels we use to communicate with and talk to our customers.
The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) closed on 31 March 2014. It has been replaced by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA). This is the information about DSA that was published at the point that it closed. It is no longer current.
Our social media channels
We use Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to communicate with and talk to our customers.
We run different social media channels for different types of people.
We run 4 Facebook pages:
- Driving Standards Agency (DSA) - for road safety professionals
- The Official Highway Code – for reminders about the rules of the road
- I can’t wait to pass my driving test - for learner drivers
- Learning to ride starts here - for learner motorcyclists
We run 2 main Twitter channels:
- @DSAgovuk – for news about DSA services
- @HighwayCodeGB – for reminders about the rules of the road
You can also talk direct to some of our teams and staff:
- DVSA press office - @DVSAPressOffice
- DSA Fraud and Integrity team - @DSAFraud
- DSA customer support - @DSA_HelpMe
- @Liz_DSA
- @Linda_DSA
- @John_DSA
YouTube
We run a YouTube channel that we use to publish road safety videos and videos about the driving test.
How we moderate our social media channels
Our Digital Communication moderates each channel from Monday to Friday during office hours.
We sometimes programme Facebook posts and tweets to be publish outside of working hours.
On Facebook, we will delete:
- abusive, racist, sexist, homophobic or inflammatory comments
- nuisance comments considered to be spam
- personal information given such as telephone numbers, address details, driving licence numbers, etc.
- posts made or content within posts (eg. film) that actively and obviously identify individual DSA staff members
- posts which clearly advertises commercial activity or solicitations of donations or any kind of money
We publish a full set of ‘house rules’ on each of our Facebook pages.
On Twitter:
- responses to any customer questions sent to both @DSAgovuk and @HighwayCodeGB Twitter accounts will be from:
- @Liz_DSA
- @Linda_DSA
- @John_DSA
- retweeting from DSA’s Twitter accounts does not imply endorsement of any kind
YouTube
On YouTube:
- we will not publish any abusive, racist, sexist, homophobic or inflammatory comments
- we will add videos with a road safety interest to our playlists – having a video added does not imply endorsement of any kind
How we connect with other social media users
We:
- will only ‘like’ other Facebook pages with a non-commercial interest - being ‘liked’ by one of our pages doesn’t imply endorsement of any kind
- we may follow you back if you follow us on Twitter - being followed by us doesn’t imply endorsement of any kind
- don’t accept requests to be added as a contact on individuals’ YouTube accounts
How we share social media messages
We will sometimes share links to other content and social media that have a real benefit to road users, eg news stories and YouTube videos.
On Twitter, we will retweet if the request:
-
is to publicise an event or activity the follower is undertaking for charity purposes (such as Sport Relief, Children in Need or a local charity)
-
is to publicise a message of congratulation on a follower’s pupil (or family member if the follower isn’t an approved driving instructor) successfully passing their driving test
We might also retweet (without being asked) those tweets whose messages are considered relevant to DSA’s mission of safe driving and riding for life.
We won’t retweet if the request asks for endorsement of an activity for commercial gain (such as an event or meeting which charges an entry fee over £5), or could cause us embarrassment.
How we respond across all social media channels
We make no commitment to respond to every single individual comment or tweet.
We cannot engage on issues of party politics or answer questions which break the general house rules.
Any official response will be prefixed by the channel name and logo.
We accept no responsibility for Facebook, Twitter or YouTube being unavailable.