Driving Test Tips Advice Videos Lessons

One of the show me tell me questions the DSA examiner might ask you before the start of the practical car driving test is to demonstrate how you would check that the car horn is working.

Tip: Did you know that your driving test will be cancelled if the vehicle's horn was not working, and you will lose your very costly test fee!

So when on the test would it be appropriate to use the car horn? The attached video clip taken from an actual driving lesson shows an example of such a situation.



It is more appropriate to have used the horn to stop the car from entering the main road, than to stop on a major highway un-necessarily and affecting other road users or try to get past the vehicle by driving on the wrong side of the road.

Other situations where you migh want to use the horn during the dsa practical car test include if you are behind a car at traffic lights and the lights change to green but the car driver is not paying attention, then a short beep is acceptable to alert them.
You could also use the horn to stop a pedestrian from walking into the road if they are not paying attention (on a mobile phone or listening to ipod/mp3 player).

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Driving test age is still 17.

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For some reason, it seems that in the UK rumors have started circulating again that the driving test age is being raised to 18.




Some say that while you will still be able to apply for a provisional licence at 17, you will not be allowed to take the UK driving test until you reach the age of 18. Others say that you will no longer be able to obtain a licence and learn to drive until you reach the age of 18.

The other version of the rumor circulating suggests that if you are under the age of 18, that a new law is being passed that will require you to have taken a certain number of driving lessons with a DSA approved instructor before you will be allowed to book a driving test!

Let me put your mind to rest by saying that none of these stories are true, and that the driving age is currently 17 and is not changing in the next year or two to 18. There is no act of parliament currently in motion to effect a change in the license or driving age law and if there were, it will still take time for it to be passed into effect, and the DVLA and DSA will give enough media publicity to inform the general public, so stop worrying or spreading false information around, and if you were born after 1 Jan 1993, you don't need to worry either, as you can take the driving test once you are 17 years old.

If you are thinking of obtaining a driving licence and learning to drive, that doesn't mean that you should put it off, as there are a few things that will always change, driving test fees and the cost of driving lessons, so the earlier you get it out of the way, the easier it will be on your wallet, and the current credit crunch might be a good way of getting quality instruction at a slightly lower price, as a BSM driving instructor told me of a learner driver who was able to haggle the price he paid for tuition with the organisation.

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Looking for cheap driving lessons?

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I have just finished running a week long intensive driving course in NW3 for a learner driver who had some time off work and wanted to making some progress as the weekly driving lessons had not been bearing any good results and it has been exhausting both for me as a driving instructor and the pupil.

Having to do a 3hr intensive session in the morning, take a short break, do some normal driving lessons for my regular learner drivers and then go back for another 2 or 3 hours of tuition is really hard work especially when you are introducing new topics, have to give full talk through after lesson briefings is really hard, and with the warm weather, one has to make sure that the body does not get dehydrated, so a lot of water drinking also. A driving instructor's life is not always easy money!

Not everyone will use a crash driving course to prepare for a test, as was the case of this learner driver, but they can now resume their weekly lesson schedule building up the necessary experience and practice required to pass the driving test.

If you are considering taking a 5 day, 1 week intensive driving course residential or otherwise, be prepared for some hard work, and do set your expectations right, as not everyone will be able to cope with the large amount of information being thrown at them in such a short period and don't be fooled by those guaranteed driving test pass promises made by some organisations, as you do pay a lot of money for lessons you may or may not need.

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Affordable driving lessons