The Practical Test
What’s the test all about?
To pass this test you have to prove that you can control the vehicle
and drive safely, observing the correct rules and procedures and that you will not significantly impede the progress of other road
users.
The test takes around 45 minutes, of which approximately 35-40 minutes will be spent driving. During the time you
are driving, the examiner will be looking for errors and will record them on a report sheet. To pass, you must commit no serious
or dangerous faults and not more than 15 driving faults.
- Driving faults are those which are of a minor nature and not regarded as potentially
dangerous.
- Serious faults are acquired if the examiner judges your error to be potentially dangerous.
- Dangerous faults are given if
your driving puts someone in danger.
Be aware that the examiner will award a serious fault marking if the same driving fault occurs
more than 3 times.
For the day of the test you must book your instructor for at least 2 hours. This gives you an hours
‘warm up’ lesson before the test, use of the driving school car to take your test in and a lift home after the test.
What will I have to do on the test?
Before you start your drive, the examiner will check your licence, test your eyesight and
ask you two questions on basic vehicle maintenance and safety checks (Show Me Tell Me).
The test is designed to assess your driving in a range of situations so there could be some out-of-town driving as well as urban driving.
For a ten minute period during the test you will have to drive independently. This will involve following direction signs, a series of verbal instructions of following the route shown on a diagram or a combination of these. You can find out more about independent driving part of the test by using the following links:
Official Information Official Video Official Podcast
You will also be required to carry out one of the
low-speed manoeuvres, which you have been taught. If reversing into a bay is one of them, this will be done at the test
centre, either right at the beginning of the test or at the end.
There will also be a number of occasions when the examiner will
ask you to pull up at a convenient place and then move away. At least one of these will involve pulling up close behind a parked
car. When you are asked to do this, a cars length will be close enough to satisfy the examiner and should be easily manageable
for you.
Emergency stops are carried out on a random basis, but you will be told if you are required to carry out this exercise.
There should be no surprises if you have prepared thoroughly.
You can view the Official Video coving the whole Practical Test
What
if I’m not ready for my test?
This often happens since the test has to be booked well in advance. It is a simple matter
to change the date (see Book a Test page). However this must be done about 1 week before the current test date (the latest
date for changing is given on your booking confirmation).
Your instructor may help you with this if you are unable to do it.