Sevenoaks Driving Test WikiThe free local encyclopedia

Reversing manoeuvres

From Sevenoaks Driving Test Wiki, the free local encyclopedia

Every car practical test includes one reversing manoeuvre, allocated by the booking system before the test.[1][2] The options are:

  1. Driving forwards into a parking bay and reversing out.
  2. Reversing into a parking bay and driving out.
  3. Parallel parking at the side of the road.
  4. Pulling up on the right, reversing about two car lengths, and rejoining the traffic.

General advice

  • Take your time. Be aware of other road users but don't feel rushed by them.[1]
  • Let the examiner finish. Learners who have done many mock tests sometimes start before the instruction is complete, which frustrates examiners and can bring the candidate back to the centre early.
  • Sensors and cameras are allowed, but the examiner is assessing observation, control and judgement, so they are an aid, not a substitute for looking.
  • Secure the car when finished. A "thank you" from the examiner is often the cue.

Bay parking

In a car park the candidate must turn left or right into a bay, not drive straight into one ahead. Crossing the white lines while going in and out is fine; finishing with a tyre on a line may be a driving fault for control. If asked "Are you happy where you've finished?", it is not a trick: the candidate can open the door, or switch off and get out, to look, and can make up to two corrections. A forward bay park is still a reversing manoeuvre, so careful observation while reversing out matters.[1]

Newman once saw a manoeuvre so slow that the examiner called it "terminally slow" in the debrief, without marking a fault.[1]

The car parks examiners commonly use in Sevenoaks are listed in Sevenoaks test routes § Car parks. Many are older, with narrower bays than modern supermarkets.

Parallel park

In every test Newman has attended, the parallel park has been behind a single parked car, never between two, and always on the left. The candidate should finish within about two car lengths of that car; a common error is completing the park and then reversing a further two lengths.[1]

Reversing on the right

Unusually, the candidate pulls up on the right-hand side of the road, facing oncoming traffic. Newman suggests a good all-round look, reversing one car length and pausing, then another look and the final length. The most common mistake is forgetting the mirrors while reversing, and moving off again needs good observation and a signal down the left.[1]

References

  1. Newman, Geoff (2026). Sevenoaks Driving Test Secrets, chapter 14.
  2. "What happens during the test". GOV.UK.
Categories: Driving test procedures