You may have heard that the Theory Test is changing in January 2012. Well, actually it isn’t. All that’s happened is that the Driving Standards Agency has stopped allowing the test questions to be published supposedly because they don’t like the idea of people learning by rote (although, to be honest, I’m not sure how else you’re supposed to learn traffic signs!!).

The good news is that we knew this change was coming for over a year and our theory test question bank was amended in plenty of time to conform with the new regulations. Our members have been using our question bank since March 2011 to successfully pass their tests. So, you don’t need to worry – PassYourTheory.org.uk continues to provide the best quality, best value theory test preparation on the planet. Guaranteed.

The practical driving test is the final step before you become a driver. The purpose of the driving test is for you to show the examiner that you can drive safely in different road and traffic conditions. You also need to show that you understand the Highway Code through the way you drive.

Before you get in the car, you will be asked to read a car number plate to check your eyesight.

You’ll then be asked “show me, tell me” vehicle safety questions (one of each). You can download all these questions.

The Driving Test

The test itself lasts about 40 minutes and you’ll be tested on the following:

• Your general driving ability
• Your ability to reverse your vehicle safely
• Your ability to drive safely while making decisions independently

If you make a mistake, don’t worry too much as it might be a minor driving fault and you might still pass. If your examiner thinks your driving has become a danger to other road users, he or she will stop the test.

Independent driving was introduced into the Practical driving test in October 2010. In this part of the practical test, you drive for about 10 minutes without step by step direction from your examiner.

During the independent driving section, you will be asked to drive either following a set of directions the examiner gives you, follow the traffic signs or both.

It’s really important to remember that this is not a test of your navigational skills. You can ask the examiner to repeat the directions at any time and you won’t fail if you go off the route: you are being judged on your driving skills.

Before you can start having lessons, you must have applied for and received a Provisional Driving Licence.

You can apply for a provisional licence online if you:

• are a resident of Great Britain
• can meet the minimum age requirement
• can meet the minimum eyesight requirement
• are currently not prevented from driving for any reason
• can pay £50.00 by MasterCard, Visa, Electron or Delta debit or credit card
• have a valid UK passport or another form of identity
• can provide addresses of where you have lived over the last three years

You can apply for your provisional licence by clicking the link, just make sure you have the following ready:

• a valid debit or credit card
• your UK passport if you have one
• your National Insurance number if you have one
• details of previous addresses

Over 1,200 Theory Test Questions

All memberships include more than 1,200 hyper-accurate Theory Test questions that will give you the perfect preparation for the multiple choice part of the theory test.
Did you know?
More people fail the multiple choice part than the Hazard Perception part – make sure you learn it!

Graphical Progress Charts

You need to know which areas to work on and our in-depth charts show exactly where your weaknesses are. We track your responses to the questions in the theory test and present them to you in the form of bar charts so you can brush up on the parts you’re struggling with and not waste time studying parts you’re already good at.

The Toughest 50 Questions Test

We’ve gathered together the hardest 50 questions in the Theory Test into one mock test. If you can pass this, you’re well on the way to cracking the multiple choice part of the test. Dare you give it a go?

Sign Questions

Lots of learners find the Sign Questions tough so we’ve put them all together into a series of themed mock theory tests. Take any of those tests and you’ll only see sign questions so you can practice them in one place.

More than TWICE as many Hazard Perception Clips

Most people worry about Hazard Perception but you really don’t need to. Buying a PowerPack means you get more than twice as many clips to practice on including city and country driving. Don’t leave it to chance, sign up for a PowerPack and get all the practice you need to sail through this part of the test, no worries

No quibble Pass Guarantee!

Back in 2005 when we launched PassYourTheory we invented the Pass Guarantee. Others have tried to copy it but none of them have the courage to offer a no quibble guarantee like us – you have to ask why? Maybe their services aren’t as effective as they pretend. PassYourTheory, on the other hand, is such an effective way of getting you through your test, we guarantee to refund you without quibbling, no small print whatsoever. No-one else has such confidence in their service.

So, if you’re a Gold Member and you fail your next test we will refund you and keep your membership open so you can continue to practice.

Unlike other services, our Guarantee is genuinely no quibble – just drop us a line and we’ll sort it out.

FREE BONUS CDROM

Gold Members get a Free CDROM containing all the hazard perception training so you can view the clips without needing an internet connection and without having to wait for them to download to your computer.

Take as long as you like!

Take all the time you want with our Gold Membership. Join as a Gold Member and your membership stays active for as long as this site exists! You don’t need to do anything to renew it, just become a Gold Member and get lifetime access – that’s one thing less to worry about!

From 21st January 2011, if you’re one of the few with a government “identity card” then you’ll be unable to use it to identify yourself when you turn up for your practical driving test. Seems bizarre doesn’t it, but there we are.

So, the only forms of identity that count are:

• A Photo Card Licence AND Counterpart (the paper bit)
• or, in the unlikely event that you still have an old paper licence, you’ll need to bring it with a Passport

New powers to tackle uninsured driving will come into force within months, Road Safety Minister Mike Penning announced today.

Under the new powers it will be an offence to keep an uninsured vehicle, rather than just to drive when uninsured.

Currently every responsible motorist pays an average £30 each year within their premiums to cover crashes involving uninsured and untraced drivers. It is also estimated that uninsured and untraced drivers kill 160 people and injure 23,000 every year.

Mike Penning said:

“Uninsured drivers push up premiums for other motorists and often drive with no regard for other road users, so it is vital that we do everything we can to keep them off the roads.

“More than 400 uninsured vehicles are already being seized by the police every day but it is simply not possible to catch every uninsured driver in this way. That is why we are bringing in these new powers which will help us to take targeted action while freeing up police time to deal with the hard core of offenders.”

Ashton West, Chief Executive at the Motor Insurers’ Bureau, said:

“Today’s news marks a significant step forward in the fight against uninsured driving. This means that as enforcement can take place for both keeping and driving a vehicle without insurance there will be no place for illegal motorists to hide.

“Continuous Insurance Enforcement (CIE) will complement and run alongside existing police roadside enforcement, which has already reduced uninsured driving by 20 per cent.”

Under the new system:

• the DVLA will work in partnership with the Motor Insurers’ Bureau to identify uninsured vehicles
• motorists will receive a letter telling them that their vehicle appears to be uninsured and warning them that they will be fined unless they take action
• if the keeper fails to insure the vehicle they will be given a £100 fine
• if the vehicle remains uninsured – regardless of whether the fine is paid – it could then be seized and destroyed

Vehicles with a valid Statutory Off Road Notice (SORN) will not be required to be insured.

The Department for Transport today made the Commencement Order to make it an offence to be the registered keeper of a vehicle which does not have insurance, as well as regulations to support this. Further regulations will be made shortly, allowing the scheme to come into force in the Spring.

There’s no getting around the fact that insurance for young drivers is more expensive. This is nothing new but the difference between young and experienced drivers has become greater and greater over the years so it’s important that you do what you can to drive down the cost of your insurance.

1: Get PassPlussed

PassPlus is a series of extra lessons given by a driving instructor after you’ve passed your test. These lessons will teach you how to cope with bad weather, countryside and night driving, driving on dual carriageways and motorways. Not only will these lessons make you a safer driver but you’ll also get a discount on your insurance once you’ve passed the course. Find out more at the DSA’s PassPlus web page.

2: Choose the right car

Actually, it’s not the car itself that’s the problem. The issue is that insurance companies know that the sorts of drivers who want certain cars (eg “boy racer” hatchbacks) are more likely to have accidents. In general, the lower the engine size and the smaller the car, the lower your insurance premiums are likely to be.

Insurers place car models into 20 groups with group 1 cars being the cheapest to insure. So, before you buy a car, check which group it’s in.

For example, these are all in Group 1, 2 or 3:

• Ford Fiesta
• Vauxhall Corsa
• Peugeot 206
• Renault Clio
• Fiat Punto

Important: with all these cars, only certain models will be in 1,2 or 3. It will depend on engine size, specification and the insurance history of those models. A basic Corsa with a 1 litre engine, for example, might well be in group 1 or 2 but the “sport” version with 1.6 engine could easily be in group 6.

3: Have a high Excess

Excess is the amount that you have to pay out of a claim. For example, let’s say you prang someone else’s car and the damage is assessed at £1,000. If you have an excess of £400 then you would pay that much and your insurer would pay the remainder. The higher the excess, the lower the premium although there’s obviously a risk involved.

4: Pay As You Go

Obviously, you should get plenty of quotes for insurance but you should also consider “Pay As You Go” insurance. In most cases, this means that a small device is fitted to your car and you only pay per mile. The amount you pay depends on your circumstances and also varies according to the time of the day that you drive. For example, driving at 11pm might cost several times as much as driving at 11am because the insurers know that more accidents involving young people happen at night.

For example, take a look at i-kube.

The Key to passing Hazard Perception

Hazard Perception is the most feared part of the Theory Test and with some reason as more people fail their test on the Hazard Perception than on the multiple choice.

However, as with the multiple choice part, you will only fail if you don’t prepare. The good news is that Hazard Perception is much simpler than the theory test to prepare for. Look at it this way, with the Theory Test you need to learn the correct answer to every one of the 800 odd questions (depending on whether you’re doing the Car or Motorcycle test). So, at Passyourtheory you can learn the answers to all of those questions as we have the real question bank.

With Hazard Perception, all you need to know is one thing: what is a developing hazard? So, our training is focussed on training that one single thing. Rather than working your way through dozens of clips filmed by amateurs that bear little resemblance to the real clips, with Passyourtheory you are practicing on real DSA training clips that we’ve purchased from the government. This means that you can complete your training much more quickly and with far greater understanding of what a developing hazard is and you’ll be prepared to pass your test with ease.

During your test you will see 14 clips. 13 of these will have one developing hazard, one of the clips will have two hazards. These clips are picked randomly from an enormous databank of clips. The DSA does not release those clips to anyone so no web site or CDROM has these clips. Passyourtheory, however, has purchased training clips from the DSA and these clips are very similar to the real ones and represent the best possible practice.

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There is only ONE link to use to book your theory test, and that’s the official DSA Theory Test Booking Service.

Do NOT be fooled by the services that appear in the sponsored listings in a Google search. Why? Because you will end up paying around £50 for a booking that should only cost £31!

What, you mean they charge an extra twenty quid? What for?

In truth, nothing at all. They are simply screwing you. For example, let’s take www.booktheorytests.co.uk. They will charge you an extra £17 on top of the £31 DSA booking fee. What do you get for this extra? Apart from “theory test training” (which, as you know, you can get from 1p from us), you get “Pass Protection Plus”. This claims to include  ”Up to three free re-sits if you fail your test” but in order to benefit from this service (which, remember, costs and extra £17) you have to satisfy a range of conditions including that you got at least 35 in the multiple choice test. The biggest “gotcha”, however, is the fact that it doesn’t cover you if you fail hazard perception!

What? You pay £17 extra for a service that doesn’t cover you if you fail the hazard perception?

Services like this make me livid. They are preying on the nervousness of people like you and hoping you don’t read the small print.

Here’s my message: Save your money and prepare properly for your test and you’ll pass