Driving Test Advice
Preparation
- Before the practical driving test, your driving examiner will ask you to read the number plate on a stationary vehicle. The distance requirement for the eyesight test using old style number plates is 20.5 metres or 20 metres if the new-style number plate is used. New-style number plates are easily identifiable starting with two letters e.g. AB 51 ABC.
If you can’t speak English or have difficulty reading, you may copy down what you see.
Make certain that you can read a vehicle number plate at the required distance. When applying for your driving licence from the DVLA you should let them know if you have:
- any visual condition which affects both eyes (not including short or long sight or colour blindness)
- any visual condition which affects your sight (not including short or long sight or colour blindness) e.g. if you have sight in one eye only
If you have had sight correction surgery you should declare this when you apply for
your provisional licence.
2. Be sure that you know the precise Day, Date, Time and Driving Test Centre where you will be taking your driving test. Give these details to your driving instructor as soon as you receive them. If you are not going to the driving test centre with a driving instructor, make sure that you, or your accompanying driver know exactly where the driving test centre is and where you will need to park your car. Do this prior to the day of your driving test to avoid any last moment panicking looking for the driving test centre on the day. Note: If you are taking your driving test in a private car you will need to contact the insurance company to let them know that you will be taking your driving test in your car to make sure that it the car is properly insured.
3. Make sure that you know where both parts of your driving licence and theory test certificate are at least a day or two before the day of the driving test.
4. On the day of your driving test, have something to eat and drink before. Don’t go in for your driving test on an empty stomach. At the very least eat a banana, as they are reputed to help with concentration.
5. Dress comfortably. Dress in clothes which you would normally wear on your driving lessons. The examiner will not be swayed by what you are wearing, only by your driving ability. Avoid wearing loose bangles, bracelets or a loose watch as this may well distract you while you are trying to concentrate.
6. Make sure that your car is clean, tidy with no loose objects which may move around inside the car if you have to make a quick or emergency stop. Be sure that all the car windows and lights are clean so that you can see, and if you do need lights, that others can also see you.
7. Arrive at the driving test centre between 5-10 minutes before the start time of your driving test. Don’t arrive 20-30 minutes early, for a number of reasons. Firstly you may be making it more difficult for others on the driving test before yours to manoeuvre or park when they arrive back from their driving test. Secondly you are wasting valuable practise and ‘warm up’ time. Finally, a long wait in the waiting room does nothing to help you to keep calm and relaxed. Ideally you want to cut down the time difference between driving your car and the beginning of the driving test. But, it goes without saying; don’t be late, as this will have a negative effect on your mindset.
8. Most driving test centres have toilets, so if you feel that this will help you to relax and concentrate, give yourself enough time to include this too.
9. When you enter the waiting room and find a seat take your time to relax, and in your mind, go over the calming techniques which you have learnt to help you to get into the right frame of mind. Be positive in your thoughts. Remember that at the beginning of your driving test that you already have that full driving licence and as long as serious or dangerous errors are avoided, you will still have one at the end of your driving test too.
The Driving Test Procedure
1. When you get to the driving test centre make sure that you park in the correct place. Take a look around to see where the other driving test candidates or driving school cars are parked.
2. It is a good idea to lock the car and hold on to the car keys yourself.
3, Remember to take both your green paper part and the photocard part of your driving licence into the driving test waiting room with you. If you do not have either of these with you, you will not be allowed to take your driving test and you will forfeit your driving test fee.
4. At the appointed driving test time the driving examiners will enter the waiting room. Your examiner will call out your name. You will need to approach your examiner and give him both parts of your driving licence to be checked. Your examiner will ask you to read the declaration as set out below. If you are satisfied that you meet the conditions you will need to sign the declaration which states:
“I declare that:
- The use of the test vehicle for the purposes of the test is fully covered by a valid policy of insurance which satisfies the requirements of the relevant legislation.
- I normally live/have lived in the UK for at least 185 days in the last 12 months (except taxi/private hire). See note 30.”
5. The examiner will then ask you if you would like your accompanying driver to come with you on the driving test. Then he will ask you to accompany them out of the waiting room into the car park or street. You will then be asked to point out the car that you wish to use for your driving test.
6. The examiner will now take you to a place to read a vehicle number plate. As long you successfully read this then you will proceed to your car. If you don’t manage to read the number plate the you will be asked to move a little closer. If you still cannot read the number plate the examiner will go back into the office to get a measuring tape and will then proceed to measure the exact minimum distance and then ask you to read a number plate again. If you successfully read the number plate the driving test will continue. If you still cannot read the number plate the driving test will be terminated immediately, and unfortunately you will lose your driving test fee.
7. When you go over to your car the examiner will ask you one of the Combinations from the ‘Tell Me, Show Me’ list. If you are asked to lift the bonnet, it is a good idea to put your driving licence in the car so that you have both hands free to operate and lift the bonnet if asked.
8. The examiner will then ask you to get into the car and make yourself comfortable. Your seat and mirror should already be correctly adjusted from when you were driving before arriving at the driving test centre so I would not alter these unless absolutely necessary. In the meantime the examiner will be making a note of the registration, make and model of your car and that your car is taxed and doesn’t have any obvious defects such as damaged tyres or lights.
9. The examiner will then offer to give you an overview of the driving test. That you are going to be out for around 40 minutes covering various road and traffic conditions. You will be asked to carry out one manoeuvre and approximately 10 minutes of Independent Driving. You may also be asked to carry out an Emergency Stop, but if so, you will be asked to pull up and stop at the side of the road so that the examiner can explain what the procedure will be (this is only carried out in 1 of 3 driving tests).
Driving Whilst On Your Driving Test
1. Keep Calm, Relaxed and Confident. Stay in the ‘Present’! Don’t worry what happened a few minutes ago or what is going to happen in a few minutes time. Just concentrate on the here and now, and just deal with the current road and traffic conditions. Keep your mind on your driving and what is going on around you. Try not to think about the examiner or whether you have passed or failed as this is a distraction, and you could miss something important concerning other roadusers or your control of the car.
2. Imagine that you have just arrived in town an hour early and that you have an hour to spare. In other words, take your time and don’t rush into any situations.
3. If you notice a problem ahead, SLOW DOWN and give yourself more thinking time. Maybe it will have resolved itself before you get there.
4. The driving test is probably the only journey where you don’t need to be anywhere at any particular time, so don’t rush. Imagine that you have arrived in town early and that you have an hour or more to spare.
(After you have your full driving licence you will be driving to work, to home, to a friend or family, for a personal trip etc, so you may be under some sort of time pressure. Although you should always plan your trips so that you leave in plenty of time and allow for holdups along the way…but unfortunately, many don’t!)
5. Don’t ‘pre-judge’ the outcome of your driving test. What YOU may consider would be marked as a Serious or Dangerous driving error, the driving test examiner may not. The examiner may only note what you did as a minor driving fault, or perhaps too trivial to even note down. Remember the examiner is the expert so leave the final decision to the examiner. Over the years I have had many people come back from their driving test convinced that they had failed, only to discover that either they had actually PASSED their driving test, or that what they thought they had failed on was not marked as a failure point, but they failed on something else AFTER their error because they mistakenly convinced that the earlier mistake would result in failure.
6. When you have passed your driving test your driving instructor will decide whether you drive the driving school car home or not. If you take your driving test in a private car, you will not be insured to drive it until you have contacted the insurance company to tell them that you are now a full licence holder. Although the insurance company will have insured you up to this point, it is only as a ‘provisional licence holder’. Once you have passed your driving test your circumstances have now changed in the eyes of the insurance company. Usually just a quick phone call to the insurance company is all it takes to allow you to drive the car immediately. So if you do take your own car, take your the phone number and policy number to the driving test centre with you if you would like to drive immediately after passing your driving test.
Remember: Keep Calm and Don’t Rush – Concentration and Determination is the key
Overcome Driving Test Nerves by: Concentrating on Driving…NOT on feeling Nervous! !
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