Government Response

The Government responded to this petition on Thursday 20th May 2021

Driving safely around horses is covered in the theory and hazard perception test. All candidates are assessed on awareness, anticipation and planning skills, which are needed if driving around horses.

The topic of driving safely around horses is covered in the theory test and hazard perception test. A number of questions in the car theory test directly ask about horse riders.

In September 2020, theory test case studies were replaced with video clips, one of which involves an encounter with a ridden horse. There are also several available hazard perception clips relating to horses.

Every candidate is assessed on their ability to show awareness, anticipation and planning skills during the practical driving test by demonstrating how they deal with all road users they encounter during their test, which may include horses, vulnerable road users, smaller vehicles and cyclists.

The practical driving test is conducted in a live environment; therefore, it is not possible for every candidate to experience a situation involving driving around horses. If a candidate does encounter a horse while on test, their ability to deal with the situation will be assessed. If they fail to deal with it appropriately, an assessment is made on how far from the expected outcome the candidate was.

In December 2017, changes were made to the practical driving test that allowed for test routes to go further afield and take in more high speed and high-risk roads, particularly country roads and rural locations. As these areas are more likely to contain horses, the opportunity to encounter a horse on test has increased.

The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has worked with The British Horse Society, and, in 2020, the Government consulted the public on changes to The Highway Code to improve the guidance on sharing the roads with cyclists, pedestrians and horse riders. The aim is to introduce an updated Highway Code in 2021 that will improve safety for cyclists, pedestrians and horse riders. The Highway Code is a source for national driving standards and all future driving theory and practical tests.

Department for Transport