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Hazard perception in stage four
Find out what hazard perception skills you need to know in stage four.
In this topic
Hazard perception in stage four
See, think and do in complex environments
Things to remember in complex environments
Blind spots in complex environments
How you get better at hazard perception
Examples of how to talk through see, think and do
Help improve your hazard perception, scanning and concentration skills with Drive Smart
Take our hazard perception practice test
Hazard perception in stage four
Developing good hazard perception skills is a key part of becoming a safe driver, but it takes time and experience.
In stage four, you’ll continue to develop hazard perception skills in all conditions and situations to prepare you for when you’re driving solo.
Your supervising driver will still be at your side in case you need them, but try and use your hazard perception of see, think and do as if you were driving solo.
See, think and do in complex environments
A lot of things are happening around you when you drive in complex environments.
Look around your vehicle to know what’s going on to see, think about and respond to hazards safely.
You need to take into account the busier nature of complex environments and how quickly things change.
Think about how a potential hazard may affect you and other roads users.
Things to remember in complex environments
Blind spots in complex environments
You may need to change lanes, merge or pass vehicles in other lanes on multi-lane roads.
This means you need to be extra careful to check your blind spot.
Make sure you do head checks to see what’s in your blind spot before changing or merging lanes.
Stay back from vehicles in other lanes and keep out of their blind spots.
How you get better at hazard perception
It can take years to develop good hazard perception skills.
As you gain experience in a range of situations and environments, you’ll get better at seeing, thinking about and responding to potential hazards.
In stage four, your supervising driver will be more like your passenger, so talk with them about how you’re managing hazards using see, think and do.
The best way to keep getting better at hazard perception is to get lots of on-road driving experience.
You can also practice your skills with our online hazard perception test.
The hazard perception practice test
The online hazard perception practice test means you can test your hazard perception skills to identify potential hazards and react to other vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists in real-life driving scenarios.
The videos you’ll see in the practice test are like the videos you’ll be shown in the real test, so it’s a good way to help you prepare.