Back to Theory Hub
Hazard Awareness — free theory test practice
Hazard awareness is scored on anticipation rather than reaction. The questions describe a scene — a parked ice-cream van, a bus pulling out, a wet leaf-covered bend — and ask what you should already be doing about it.
It also covers the hazards you bring with you: tiredness, medication, alcohol the morning after, and anything that slows your reaction time.
Once you're passing this topic comfortably, try a full mock test under real timed conditions, brush up on UK road signs, or browse the full question bank. Ready to drive? See our intensive driving courses.
Hazard Awareness
Question 1 of 51
A friend has given you some cough medicine. You take some and wish to drive your car, what should you do first?
What the DVSA tests on hazard awareness
- Static, moving and developing hazards and how they differ
- Scanning, mirror use and planning your response early
- Effects of tiredness, alcohol, drugs and prescription medicine
- Weather, light and road-surface conditions that reduce your margin
- Distractions inside the car, including phones and passengers
Common mistakes in this topic
- Choosing the reactive answer (brake hard) over the planning answer (ease off early)
- Underestimating how long alcohol stays in the system overnight
- Assuming a prescribed medicine cannot affect your fitness to drive
- Treating a hazard as cleared before you have passed it
Instructor tip: If two answers both work, pick the one that acts earliest — the DVSA marks anticipation, not recovery.