If the weather is terrible, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) probably won’t give driving tests.
Conditions such as snow, fog, heavy rain, or ice may cause them to cancel a driving test, but if the weather is minimal, the test could go on as scheduled.
Look for the driving test centre’s phone number in your confirmation letter or email, and give them a call around 1 to 2 hours before your scheduled test time if severe weather is expected on the day of your test.
If you call any sooner than that, no one at the testing centre may pick up the phone or even return your call. The test centre staff may not be able to answer your enquiry if you call too early.
In poor weather, examiners can inspect the driving test routes multiple times in a day, and decisions on whether or not to hold tests are typically made just one or two hours beforehand. If you phone the testing centre the day before your exam, for example, they won’t have any information for you.
In order to avoid any potential delays, it is recommended that anyone taking an afternoon driving test contact the testing centre first thing in the morning.
Assuming the weather holds, it is likely that the afternoon appointments will go place if the morning ones go off without a hitch.
Drivability Evaluation on Icy Roads
If there is still snow on the ground when your test is scheduled to take place, the examiner will do a preliminary drive-by inspection of the test routes in the morning. The test will most likely go on if the roads have been salted and are passably clear. In the event that there is significant snowfall and the roads become impassable, the test may be postponed or even cancelled.
The proficiency exam for driving in wintry conditions;
Where snow has fallen, driving exams are likely to be postponed.
Due to the possibility of frost, the driving examiner additionally inspects the roadways. Road frost is more common in the morning. Since major thoroughfares have heavy traffic, secondary thoroughfares are usually empty. The driving test may still be postponed if frost poses a risk in the quieter residential regions and country roads where they are administered.
DRIVING TESTS IN WET AND FOGGY CONDITIONS
Having a driving test postponed due to weather conditions like rain or fog is quite unusual. If rain or fog is heavy enough, the test may be postponed. In the event that your driving test goes ahead despite the weather, make sure to wipe the rain off the windshield. This may seem like a no-brainer, but in the flurry of activity around a driving test, novice motorists often forget to use them. To comply with the law, you must turn on your rear fog lights whenever they are needed, which includes during periods of fog. Only the rear fog lights, and not any other kind of lighting, are permitted by legislation.
If you’re driving on your test and the weather is nice, the two-second rule will help you keep a safe following distance.
– It’s a good idea to set a timer for two seconds from when the leading vehicle reaches a landmark like a lamppost. If you get to the lamppost before you reach the target number, you are too close.
Check out the 2-second rule if you need clarification.
Whenever weather conditions like rain, fog, snow, ice, or frost are present, more caution should be taken on the road. This is a situation that requires your best judgement as it is very dependent on the extremes of the conditions. The most extreme situations should call for a delay of 4-10 seconds.
CANCELLED DRIVING TEST
If you show up for your driving test and it gets cancelled because of inclement weather, the examiner will let you know why in the waiting area. Furthermore, the examiner will provide you with a letter detailing the reasons for the denial and the following steps that will be taken.
In the case that your driving test is postponed, the DVSA will move you to the next available appointment at no additional expense. Your driving test fee is non-refundable by the DVSA. If the revised date for your driving test is not convenient after you have received notification of it through email or regular mail, you can cancel or postpone it.
If you need to cancel your exam and give at least three business days’ notice, we’ll give you a full refund. The exam can be rescheduled as long as 3 business days’ notice is given.
HOW TO BOOK YOUR DRIVING TEST THIS WINTER
Driving tests are routinely postponed in the winter owing to inclement weather. In order to ensure that the roads are safe for your driving test, schedule it for the afternoon. By that time, the ground frost should have melted and the road salt will have done its job.
WHAT HAPPENED TO MY DRIVING TEST?
You must call the DVSA or your driving test centre within 1–2 hours of your scheduled driving test time to find out if it has been postponed. The DVSA’s several points of contact are listed in the “How to Drive” section.