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- Take our quiz and answer the same five questions from the official exam
It’s an argument brewing between older drivers and those who just got their license: the theory test has become more difficult over time, meaning those who have been on the road for years could struggle to pass if They had to take it again today.
This is something that has recently been put to the test using a questionnaire to find out whether veteran drivers would need to brush up on their Highway Code before taking the theory test in 2024.
Carwow posed five multiple-choice questions taken from the DVSA’s official driving theory test to a panel of 2,000 drivers, and less than 1 per cent answered them all correctly.
So how many of these could you get right?
Would you pass your theory exam if you had to take it again today? A new study has found that only 1% of license holders answered five questions on the official exam correctly. Now you can try…
The results of the study showed that only 18 of 2,000 drivers gave the correct answer to all five questions, a dismal success rate of just 0.9 percent.
Incredibly, the ‘pass rating’ for each of the five questions was less than half, and one in particular proved very difficult, with only 10 per cent of the panel getting it right.
Take the following quiz to see how many of the questions you can answer correctly:
Is the driving theory test getting more difficult? What the statistics say
While drivers old and new will always debate the suggestion that the theory test is becoming increasingly difficult over time, official figures published by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency hint that it is becoming more difficult.
The official passing rate for theory exams has been gradually falling over the past 15 years; In 2009, it was 65 percent, while this year it stands at just 45 percent, an all-time low.
To successfully pass the current exam, students must score a minimum of 43 out of 50 on the multiple choice question section and 44 out of 75 on the hazard perception section of the exam, which was first introduced in 2002.
To further investigate this assumption, Carwow asked respondents about their own experiences taking the driving theory test.
It found that three-quarters of those who had been driving between 12 and 20 years passed the first time, compared to just half (56 per cent) who had been on the road between one and three years.
Of the panel that has been running for less than 12 months, only 17 per cent passed the first time they asked.
The question that the 2,000 license holders often get wrong is the third, regarding overtaking on one-way streets.
Only 10 percent of the panel said “on the right or on the left,” and the majority (41 percent) believe passing is not allowed at all.
DVSA records show that the official pass rate for theory exams has gradually declined over the past 15 years; In 2009, it was 65%, while so far this year it is only 45%, a historic low.
Most people say they are “good drivers” despite having difficulty with theory test questions
Respondents were also asked to rate themselves as drivers, with some interesting results.
On average, 73 percent of motorists believed they were “very good” or “good” drivers, while only 1 percent rated themselves as “very bad” or “bad.” The rest gave themselves a mediocre “average” performance rating.
Motorists ages 25 to 35 were most likely to rate themselves as “very good” or “good,” at 84 percent, according to the study.
In contrast, the youngest age group (18 to 25 years old) provided the highest instances of self-description as “bad” or “very bad,” at 11 percent (11 percent said they were bad).
Men were more likely than women to rate their driving ability highly: 80 percent versus 65 percent, respectively.
Mat Watson, chief content officer of Wow and face of his YouTube channel, has been a motor journalist for more than 20 years, but admits that he answered one of the five questions on the driving theory test incorrectly.
He said: ‘Those who want to get their license should do everything they can to prepare: read the highway code and take practice tests to familiarize themselves with the rules of the road.
‘And the practice and learning don’t end when you get your license; It was interesting that respondents to our survey aged between 18 and 24 were more likely to consider themselves ‘bad’ drivers.
“Some of it is probably just experience on the roads rather than competence, but if that’s you, there’s no shame in taking more lessons and avoiding any situation where you don’t feel confident or safe on the roads.”