About the Theory Test

You must have passed your theory test before booking a practical driving test, but you can start your driving lessons before so it’s really important that you get practising for your theory test as soon as you possibly can. Your driving instructor can help you with this but having an app to practice on will definitely speed the process up.

The theory test is taken at an official DVSA test centre and consists of 2 parts, multiple choice questions and hazard perception which are taken one after the other. You must pass both parts to pass the test.

The multiple choice test is based on rules of the road and will last 57 minutes with 50 questions. Before the test begins you will be given full instructions on how the test works and you’ll have the option to go through a practice session so you can get used to the lay out.

Three of the questions are about a short video. It will show a normal driving situation, such as:
driving through a town centre or driving on a country road. The video is silent and you can watch it as many times as you like during the test.

You can navigate between questions and ‘flag’ questions that you want to come back to later in the test.

To pass this part of the test you must get 43 out of the 50 questions right.

You can have a break of up to 3 minutes before the hazard perception test starts.

The hazard perception test is an interactive video test where you have to scan different road settings from a driver’s viewpoint and identify hazards as soon as they develop. 14 video clips will be shown featuring everyday road scenes and at least one developing hazard, you get points for spotting the hazard as soon as they start to happen.

You can score up to 5 points for each developing hazard. To get the high score you need to clip the mouse as soon as you see the hazard start to develop. You only get one attempt at each clip, you can’t review or change your responses.

You don’t lose points if you click incorrectly but you won’t score anything if you click continuously or in a pattern.

Once you have passed your theory test this will be valid for 2 years from the date of issue.