Assessment Criteria: Cockpit Checks

Expected outcome / competence

Before the engine is started, the candidate should make sure that they are comfortably seated and all controls can be safely operated.

Examples of a driving fault and how it may be marked:

Driving fault:

• After stalling at a road junction, handbrake applied but attempts to start the engine whilst in gear.

Serious fault:

• At a road junction, engine started whilst in gear, resulting in vehicle entering the new road with potential risk to other road users.

Dangerous fault:

• Any situation brought about by a lack of ability to recognise the need to operate or being unable to operate the controls, which directly affects other traffic or pedestrians and causes actual danger.

The above is taken from The Driving Examiners Manual. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/guidance-for-driving-examiners-carrying-out-driving-tests-dt1

Where appropriate it has been reformatted and edited so it only refers to the driving of ordinary cars (class b).