WA Hazard Perception Test: practice, cost and the rules

The WA Hazard Perception Test is a computer test of moving traffic scenes, sat at a DTMI service centre or regional agent for $29.90. You click when it's safe to start a manoeuvre or when you need to act to avoid a crash, and in some scenes the right answer is not to click at all. You can sit it once you're 16 and a half and have held your learner's permit for 6 months. Below are DTMI's rules, then a trainer that drills when to click, in six scenes explained with WA's road rules.

Scenarios
6
Scored on
When to act
Trainer
Free
Start the simulator

The real test: moving traffic scenes, scored on when you click

What DTMI and the Drive Safe handbook say about the real test:

Format
A computer-based series of moving traffic scenes. Cars and motorcycles have separate tests; this page covers the car test
You respond by
Clicking a mouse when it's safe to begin a manoeuvre, or when you need to act to reduce the risk of a crash. Your timing, or lack of a response, is compared with the recommended one
Who can sit it
Learner's permit holders aged at least 16 years and 6 months who have held the permit for at least 6 months
Where
Any DTMI service centre or regional agent. No appointment at metro centres; call ahead in the regions. Tests must start before 3:45pm (4:45pm at the Joondalup Driver Assessment Centre)
Cost
$29.90 for your first attempt, $24.10 for each resit
A pass lasts
5 years. You must pass it before you can book your Practical Driving Assessment

When your timing feels sharp, practise in the official format with the free practice test from DTMI. Current fees and test-centre details are on DTMI's hazard perception test page.

How it works

Each scene plays out in real time. Read the instruction, watch the scene develop, and click RESPOND (or press space) at the moment a careful driver would act. You get one response per scenario. Respond too soon and it scores as too early, or as not safe if you'd pull into a gap that isn't there. In one scene the safe answer is not to respond at all.

Western Australia HPT questions, answered

Where does the HPT sit in the WA licence journey?
After the Computerised Theory Test and before the Practical Driving Assessment (PDA). You can log your supervised hours before or after you pass it, but you need it passed, and if you're under 25 at least 50 hours logged including 5 at night, before you can sit the PDA.
Is there an official practice test?
Yes. DTMI publishes a free practice test with four car situations: a right turn at an intersection, approaching an intersection, overtaking on a country road and slowing on a straight road. It recommends using a computer rather than a phone.
Should I click if I'm not sure?
Not necessarily. The Drive Safe handbook says your response, or lack of response, is compared with the recommended one, so some scenes are passed by not clicking. One scene in this trainer works that way.
What happens if I fail?
You resit on another day and pay the resit fee, $24.10.
I live a long way from a test centre. Do I still have to sit it?
If you live more than 100km from a DTMI service centre or agent that runs the test, you can apply for an exemption.
How many clips are there, and what's the pass mark?
DTMI doesn't publish the number of scenes, a time limit or a pass mark, so treat any figure you see quoted elsewhere with caution. What it does publish: the test costs $29.90, a resit $24.10, and your responses are compared with the recommended response for each scene.
Can I sit it online, and what's changing?
Not yet. In April 2026 the WA Government announced changes to the licence system, including an online hazard perception test alongside the in-centre one, a 12-month minimum learner period, 80 supervised hours (10 at night) and a 3-year provisional period. None has a start date yet, so today's rules apply: you sit the test at a service centre or regional agent.

Timing comes from practice on real roads

A simulator trains your eyes; an instructor trains your habits. After the HPT comes the driving test on real roads, and that's what an instructor gets you ready for.

Find a WA instructor