10. April 2026
DEFINITION OF DRIVING FAULTS
The following will help you understand what driving faults the examiner may give on the test and what they mean.
Fault identified – not worthy (not worthy of recording).
• Any insignificant deviation from the defined outcome that does not compromise safety or can be a matter of finesse. For example – Dry steering, sequential gear changes, not pressing the button on top of the handbrake when applying it.
Fault identified – Driving Fault – (not an immediate fail).
• Low Risk - Any sufficient deviation from the defined outcome that does not compromise safety, or can be a matter of control - to justify a fault being recorded.
• For example – the candidate took observation before emerging at the junction. However, they misjudged the distance of an approaching vehicle, causing it to slow down, safety was not compromised.
(Sixteen or more of these faults would result in failure of the test.)
There can however be occasions when one specific driving fault could by constant repetition, be regarded as serious and therefore a significant risk; for example when a candidate habitually fails to take mirror observation when appropriate.
Fault identified – Serious fault - (entails immediate failure)
• High Risk - Significant deviation from the defined outcome with safety, control and/or legal requirement breached
• For example – the candidate did not take effective observation before emerging at the junction, unaware of any other road user who may have been expected to be there.
Fault identified – Dangerous fault – (entails immediate fail).
• Actual Danger - Safety, control and/or legal requirement breached that would have caused actual danger
• For example – the candidate did not take effective observation before emerging at the junction completely misjudged both speed and distance of an approaching vehicle. The examiner had to take appropriate action to avoid a collision.
Examiners may have to take ‘action’ when it becomes necessary to do so in the interest of public safety, including their own and that of the candidate. Such intervention may be either - VERBAL (ETA-V) or PHYSICAL (ETA-P).
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