Driving test, being asked to do a reverse which was unsafe?

Question

my daughter has just failed her driving test. She was asked in a very busy area to stop and reverse around a corner, She knew it was too busy, but thought that she shouldnt question the examiner. After much waiting she became uneasy as the examiner was huffing and puffing so she thought sod it and started to move, at which point she was told to stop. Hence she failed. Should this be allowed to happen?

Answer 1

I'm not very clear exactly what your question is however,  I would say YES,  your daughter should not be allowed a driver's license.  She needs some more lessons if she can't even pass the road test.

Answer 2

With all due respect, the examiner is a VERY experienced and HIGHLY QUALIFIED driver. Did you question this at the time? I'm sure he would have given you a full explanation.

I've seen it happen many times when a candidate has failed then blamed it on the examiner.  This may or may not be the case here, but you really need to get ALL of the facts before you rush into anything.

If you still feel aggrieved then by all means lodge an appeal . Make sure it is watertight first.

Best plan would be to accept the fail, get back up and try again

Answer 3

What she needs to do is to. find out whether it was only that that caused her to fail.

If so, then she should be ble to ask another examiner, whether it was allowed for her examiner to ask her to do this manouver.

Answer 4

I would contact a supervisor where she took the test to see if this is a common practice. If they say no, then I would see if she could be retested what a different person.

Good Luck to you and your daughter.

Answer 5

The examiner is not allowed to ask the person taking the test to do something illegal. IT IS AGAINST THE LAW!!!

so many times getting ready to take my behind the wheel test I read that the instructor will NEVER ask you do do ANYTHING illegal

Answer 6

he was probably waiting for her to refuse.just testing her

Answer 7

No it shouldn't!

Get your daughter to contest the decision and ask for a re-test.

My driving test examiner tried to trip me up by asking me to do a manouevre when it was unsafe to do so, and (I don't know where the courage came from) I politely refused and explained why I refused and suggested I perform the manouvre at the next corner. I actually passed the test too!

Answer 8

I've heard the same thing happen.  She should always question unsafe requests.

Answer 9

If you have all the facts in order then no it should not be allowed but make sure that you have the story right and then go and talk with a supervisor.

Answer 10

in defence of the examiner, this really depends on what the examiner considered to be safe.

All examiners are instructed to end a request of manoeuvre with the words "when it is safe to do so"

So if the situation remained "unsafe" in your daughters opinion and she was correct she should not have attempted the manoeuvre.

Whilst the examiners behaviour may be called into question it is unfortunately your daughters word against his and any complaint probably would be pointless.

Tell your daughter not to let this instance put her off and reapply asap

happy motoring

Answer 11

I am a driving examiner and my first thought would be who says it was too busy?

Your daughter is not a full licence holder and like many inexperienced drivers may lack the skill to judge the speed & distance of other drivers correctly.

Often driving instructors tell their pupils not to carry out a manoeuvre if there is anyone else around but fail  to explain that it is fine to reverse so long as they do not affect anyone and show  that they are aware of what is  going on.

I have sat in cars on test & waited for ridiculous amounts of time because the test candidate has seen  a car that is barely visible to the naked eye & is moving at 5 miles per hour. We could have done the manoeuvre 10 times  by the time the "hazard" had arrived.

If  your daughter can't yet cope with everyday traffic conditions then she isn't ready to have her licence.

If the examiner had to tell her to stop then her actions must have caused actual danger to another road user. Was  she aware of this? Why did the examiner tell her to stop?

You need to be aware that learners who have failed their test often blame everyone but themselves for their failure. You  would probably find that if you had sat in the back during the test that  you would have agreed with the examiners decision.

Next time why not go along with your daughter on the test and see for yourself. You will then see both sides of the story.

Answer 12

He was testing her.   If she thought it unsafe,  she should have said so and explained why.      She is the driver,   she is responsible.    She has the responsibility to never perform an unsafe  act.    She needs to go take the test again.