You’re driving theory test is likely to throw up questions about what you can and can’t do on Britain’s roads. Many of the answers will be fairly obvious… don’t speed, don’t drink and drive, and don’t run red lights! However, here are a bunch of driving offences you probably didn’t know were illegal that could catch you out…
1. Sleeping while intoxicated, in your car
We’ve all done it, driven to our local promising ourselves ‘I’ll only have one’, which quickly becomes two, then three and so on. If you’ve consumed an excess amount of alcohol you know not to drive, but if you have no other way of getting home, you might decide to sleep in your car until you’ve sobered up.
However, if you do, you face getting a ‘drunk in charge fine’. UK law states that those in charge of a motor vehicle should not be intoxicated. While you could argue that being asleep does not classify as being ‘in charge’ of a vehicle, police can (and have) used this an excuse to charge people for a motoring offence.
2. Flashing your lights to give way
Again, this is something all motorists do. However, it is considered an offence should it lead to an accident. By law, flashing your headlights should only be done to make other road users aware of your presence.
3. Letting animals out of the car while broken-down on the hard shoulder
This is common among dog-owners travelling for a holiday, with their four-legged friend coming along for the experience. However, in the event of a vehicle breakdown on a motorway, animals should not be released – for obvious reasons.
They’re likely to dart into oncoming traffic, potentially causing a fatal accident and landing you with a driving offence charge.
4. Parking on the wrong side of the road at night
Yes… there’s a correct side of the road you must park on at night, but not for reasons you might be thinking. It has do with dazzling other drivers with your headlights. You’re likely to
dazzle other motorists when attempting to park on the opposite side of the road, while your rear reflector lights also become invisible once you’ve left the car.
Under Highway Code rule 248, you’re committing a motoring offence for which you could receive a Penalty Charge Notice.
5. Overtaking at a pedestrian crossing
It’s not uncommon to see motorists overtake another motorist on a multi-lane carriageway when approaching a pedestrian crossing. If other cars are stationary and you have momentum, you will nip into the next lane to pass stationary traffic. This is in fact illegal!
Why? The vehicle closest to the crossing could be concealing a pedestrian on the crossing. You’re unlikely to see them in time, potentially hitting them, resulting in serious injury or death.
There you have it, five lesser-known driving offences that could feature as questions on your driving theory test. Now you know that they’re illegal, you won’t get caught out. Knowing the correct answer could be the difference between passing and failing your theory exam!
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