Here is a driving tip for those of you taking the DSA practical assessment.
You must make every effort not to arrive late for your driving test (this is not usually a problem for those using a driving school car as the instructor will know where the centre is, how long it takes to get there and local knowledge of traffic conditions), the DSA examiner will give you a maximum of 5 minutes after you appointment for you to show up. If you arrive more than 5 minutes late, your test will not go ahead, and you will lose your booking fee (without compensation).
If you are a foreign licence holder new to the UK, you must note that you need to provide a car that is insured, roadworthy and displaying 'L' plates for the test. The Driving Standards Agency does not have cars that you can use to take the practical driving test in. You can not hire a car from rental companies (Hertz, Eurocar) for the driving test, as their insurance will not cover you, even if you have a valid international driving license, and the DSA will call up any car hire organisation to confirm insurance cover if to turn up in one, so give yourself every chance to pass the driving test, make sure you know all the DSA requirements.
Your driving test will also be cancelled if your fail the eye test, your car has a safety recall notice that you can't prove has been fixed, or fault pointed out to you which is not fixed with 5 minutes (brake light not working, tyre that needs to be changed). You are most likely not going to be given extra time to fix a fault if you already arrived late for the driving test.
