English driving licence

isolde

Hey,

Sorry if this isn't the right place to post this. I was just wondering what people could tell me about the English driving licence process. Is it the same as the Irish one - provisional first, etc.?

The reason I ask is that I drive, but have an Irish provisional and am waiting to do my test. Test won't be for ages though, probably not til Christmas (long waiting list), and I am moving to England to work in September. So I doubt I'll have my full licence by then, but would like to get a new car when I move over..

Thanks for any info!

~ isolde

leeroybrown

http://www.dvla.gov.uk/drivers/drivers.htm

John R

It is not acceptable to drive in the UK unaccompanied on a provisional, the waiting times for tests are very short and provisionals are only to allow learning.

mackerski

What the others said. Also, you'll need to apply for a UK provisional licence, since Irish ones are not recognised outside the state.

Dermot

MrPudding

Be very careful. They will accept none of the excuses people use here. You know, I need it for work or the buses are sh1t.

Driving on a provisional by yourself and being caught will result in you being charged with driving without a license, tax or insurance. You will be fined heavily and be banned from driving.

Take a couple of lesson there and apply for the test. I will be in the north in a couple of weeks, I can pick you up a form if you like. Apply for a NI provisional licence. When you get to where you are going take a couple of lessons and apply for the test. Once you get a test phone every day for a cancellation. You will get a test very quick.

MrP

seamus

^^
What they said. Also, Police prescence in the UK is far superior to here. If you think you won't be spotted, you will, and probably in your first week.

On the upside, waiting times for the test are in the region of 2/3 weeks, not 2/3 years like here, so you should have ample time to get your UK licence, which means you're also fully licenced over here

isolde

thanks for all the info guys, tis great

will pick up a NI prov form (thanks though, MrP)
how much use is a NI prov to me? is it necessary to have a prov before applying for proper test?
waiting list times sound like a dream...

wont risk driving without full licence so.

thanks again for the help!

John R

isolde wrote:

thanks for all the info guys, tis great

will pick up a NI prov form (thanks though, MrP)
how much use is a NI prov to me? is it necessary to have a prov before applying for proper test?
waiting list times sound like a dream...

wont risk driving without full licence so.

thanks again for the help!

With the short waiting times there is no real need to apply for the test before getting a licence, also you may need a licence for the test application.

If you want to get anything done while you are still here you will need a UK address, AFAIK the NI driver licencing dept is seperate from the rest of the UK so you will have to apply to the correct one for whatever address you use

There is also a written test to be done before the driving test.

mackerski

John R wrote:

AFAIK the NI driver licencing dept is seperate from the rest of the UK so you will have to apply to the correct one for whatever address you use

This may be particularly important if you want to avoid the requirement to display R-plates after passing the test.

Dermot

Tobias Greeshman

When I was in the waiting room before my test, I was talking to a guy, said he done a test in england and it was s**t hard. They ask you 30 questions and you need to get something like 27 right or something. Supposedly the Irish one is a doddle compared to the english one.

MrPudding

This is an interesting question. If you pass your test and drive in NI you need to display "R" plates for 12 months and are limited to 45MPH. The thing is, in the South and in the rest of the UK there is no such requirement. I would have thought that outside of NI there would be no need to display the "R" plates.

MrP

flikflak

Take a mock theory test here
http://www.dsa.gov.uk/mockpaper/theoryintro.htm

I have been driving for 15 years and didnt pass it! You need to get 30 out of 35. Good job they never had a theory test when I was learning as I would probably still be learning now!!

As the others have said - get your provisional then a few lessons from an approved instructor or if you want to practise your driving with an accompanying driver, the accompanying driver must be over the age of 21 and must have held (and still hold) a full licence for three years.

isolde

thanks for the link!

~ isolde

MT

Hi Isolde

You must pass the theory test before you can do the practical. But don't worry, neither test is that difficult. Once you've bought the book with all the potential questions and answers just read it through and you'll find the theory test a doddle. Indeed, as most traffic scenarios require nothing more than the use of common sense the majority of questions require no foreknowledge. For that matter, I hadn't time to read through the book but still passed. The same goes for many others I know that took it. After all, the thing is multiple choice.

Another thing you should be aware of is that there's now this visual simulation thing. (By the way the entire thing's done on a touch screen computer programme). Anyway, in this you'll be in effect in a travelling car and you must touch the screen when a particular hazard presents itself. You can't simply keep tapping the screen to cheat as you have time your response to within so many seconds at/after the situation.

As far as I can remember the entire thing has a maximum time of 45 mins - but you'll never need all of this.

As for the practical test it lasts for about 20-30 mins. You'll drive around a town/city with the assessor. He/she will mark you on your aptitude in various situations. There is some leeway. You can make at most three minor mistakes I think. Any more and you fail. However, if all three are in any one particular maneouvre you'll also fail. Equally, if you make one major mistake you'll also fail. They are very strict on this. I was the only one who was fortunate enough to pass with the particular instructor who was on that week.

The important trick to remember when booking your test is if they offer you a time take one in rush hour. This might seem crazy but as the test has a fixed time limit completion depends on time and not a fixed number of scenarios. The more you sit in traffic jams the more the clock ticks away without you having to do very much. When 20 or so mins are up all you might have done is gone around a roundabout but if its ok you pass. Obviously, the moving away and parking at the end you can't avoid but heavy traffic takes care of all else.

Good luck.

Capt'n Midnight

Of course the it's a EU license so you can use it all over.
Unless you live in NI or travel there a lot I wouldn't worry about the "R", lets face it you could take up to a year to get a license down here. Also AFAIK you have to be resident in the UK for 6 months (or is it 6 weeks) before you can do a test there , otherwise the southern hordes would nip up there to get the test.

Re FlickFlak's test link

Congratulations - You Passed!!

Your Score: 30

No comparison with the Irish one, you've to think about things - the Irish one is a memory job , buy the list of questions and answers in Easons , might even be a cheat sheet on the web.

Lennoxschips

As the previous poster mentioned, don't you have to be able to prove that you are resident in the UK in order to take a UK driving test? Surely just a UK address isn't enough, won't you have to somehow prove your residency?

Or is there a special treaty between Ireland and the UK allowing Irish passport holders to take UK driving tests easily (for example, I know Irish passport holders may vote in the UK and vice versa)?

MrPudding

I don't remember any requirement to prove residency. But then I did my test quite a while ago, things may have changed. One thing I know for sure that has changed is the fact that you now need to get someone to certify that you are indeed the person in the pictures. Back when I were a lad there was no need for this. Also someone said in another thread that you aren't allowed your L or R plates on your windows anymore. I didn't know that either.

MrP

mackerski

MrPudding wrote:

Back when I were a lad there was no need for this.

Nor for me - licences didn't have photographs on them, so there wasn't a lot of point.

Dermot

MrPudding

mackerski wrote:

Nor for me - licences didn't have photographs on them, so there wasn't a lot of point.

Dermot

I'm not that old.:D They had photos, they just took your word that it was you. Very trusting in those days!

MrP