Patente Quiz B
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Lesson and quiz, category B licence

Driver behaviour (Comportamenti alla guida)

On the exam this topic tests alcohol and blood alcohol limits, medicines and drugs, tiredness, phones and distractions, and the correct driving position; this site has 21 true or false statements to practise on it.

The theory exam has 30 statements in 20 minutes and you pass with at most 3 mistakes. Source: Codice della Strada.

Skip to the quiz Study the rules

The real theory exam is in Italian, with French or German available on request. Lessons here keep the Italian terms in italics, and the quiz shows each statement in Italian with English help underneath. Switch to Italian only in the quiz to practise under exam conditions.

The rules

Question 1 of 1

Rule 1

Alcohol: the legal limits

The general limit is 0.5 grams of alcohol per litre of blood. Between 0.5 and 0.8 g/l the offence is administrative; above 0.8 g/l it becomes a crime, with heavier penalties above 1.5 g/l. The limit is zero for new drivers in their first three years, drivers under 21 and the professional drivers listed by law, such as bus, heavy goods vehicle or taxi drivers. Refusing a breath test is punished, because otherwise refusing to cooperate would be enough to escape the check.

Example

A twenty year old who has held a licence for four years drinks a small beer at dinner. Under 21, any trace of alcohol is an offence for him.

Legal reference: CdS art. 186; CdS art. 186-bis

Exam traps

  • «The general limit is 0.8 g/l»: false, it is 0.5.
  • «A professional driver may reach 0.5 g/l»: false, for them it is zero.

Rule 2

Alcohol: effects and false remedies

Alcohol lengthens reaction times, impairs coordination and judgement of distance and dulls the sense of risk, even at low levels. With the same drink blood alcohol varies from person to person with weight, sex, an empty stomach and absorption rate, so no amount is safe for everyone and a single beer can be enough to exceed 0.5 g/l. Only time lowers blood alcohol, and slowly: an hour after the last glass the level can still be near its peak. Coffee, food and cold showers do not help.

Example

After two glasses of wine at a party you drink an espresso and wait half an hour. Nothing changes: you get home with someone who has not been drinking.

Legal reference: CdS art. 186

Exam traps

  • «Coffee removes alcohol» and «the effects end after an hour»: both false.
  • «A single beer never takes you over the limit»: false.

Rule 3

Medicines and drugs

Some over the counter medicines too, such as antihistamines, sedatives and cough syrups, can cause drowsiness: read the leaflet before driving. Narcotic drugs impair attention and perception many hours after use, well beyond the feeling of being clear headed. Driving after taking them is a crime under art. 187, rewritten by law 177/2024.

Example

An allergy antihistamine leaflet warns that it may reduce alertness. You ask the doctor for an alternative or let someone else drive.

Legal reference: CdS art. 187 (L. 177/2024)

Exam traps

  • Statements that limit the effect of drugs to the time you feel impaired are false.

Rule 4

Tiredness and sleep

Tiredness reduces attention before you even feel sleepy, and a microsleep comes without clear warning. A night without sleep impairs performance comparably to a significant blood alcohol level. Opening the window or turning up the radio is not enough: on long trips a real break roughly every two hours is advised and, if you feel drowsy, you stop somewhere safe. Speeding up to arrive sooner cuts reaction time just when alertness is lowest.

Example

Driving back from the seaside at two in the morning you start yawning. You pull into the first service area and sleep for twenty minutes before going on.

Legal reference: CdS art. 140

Exam traps

  • «Opening the window without ever stopping is enough»: false.
  • «It is better to speed up and arrive sooner»: false.

Rule 5

Phones and screens

While moving it is forbidden to use phones, smartphones, tablets and similar devices that require taking your hands off the wheel, even for a moment, at any speed. Hands free kits and earpieces are allowed, as long as no hands are needed and, for an earpiece, the driver hears well in both ears. The duty to pay attention remains: reading a message on a dashboard mounted screen takes your eyes off the road for whole seconds. The sat nav destination is set with the vehicle stationary. Penalties were raised by law 177/2024.

Example

A message arrives while you are crawling in a queue. The phone stays in its holder and you read it once parked.

Legal reference: CdS art. 173

Exam traps

  • «A handheld phone is allowed at low speed»: false.

Rule 6

Driving position and noise

Seat and mirrors are adjusted before setting off, not on the move. The driver must have full freedom of movement to manoeuvre and control the vehicle at all times, so does not drive with an arm out of the window, not even on a clear straight. Very loud music masks useful sounds such as an emergency siren or a horn.

Example

Getting into a relative's car, you adjust the seat, head restraint and all three mirrors before releasing the parking brake.

Legal reference: CdS art. 169

Exam traps

  • «An arm out of the window is fine on a clear straight road»: false.

Rule 7

What can go wrong

Three scenes show how alcohol, sleep and phones turn into crashes. First scene: after a wedding in the Langhe a 24 year old guest who has held a licence for five years drinks three glasses of wine over four hours and eats a lot. He feels clear headed and takes the provincial road towards Alba. At a carabinieri check the breathalyser reads 0.9 g/l: above 0.8 g/l drink driving is a crime under art. 186 of the Codice della Strada, with a criminal report and licence suspension. Had he been a new driver, a trace would have been enough. Second scene: on the A1 motorway between Bologna and Florence at three in the morning, a driver who has been at the wheel for five hours without a break opens the window and turns up the radio to stay awake. On the Apennine stretch he falls asleep for a few seconds, drifts out of the lane and hits the crash barrier. Luckily nobody is hurt, but the car is wrecked. Tiredness is not beaten with fresh air: it is beaten by stopping to sleep at a service area. Third scene: in Rome, on the Lungotevere, a driver in a queue picks up his phone to answer a message. The queue moves off, he looks up too late and runs into the scooter in front, knocking the rider off. Art. 173 bans using devices that need your hands while moving, at any speed, queues included; a fine and point deductions come on top of the damage. The shared lesson is simple. If you drink you do not drive, if you are sleepy you stop, and the phone is used only hands free or with the vehicle parked.

Legal reference: CdS art. 186; CdS art. 173

CdS: Codice della Strada (d.lgs. 285/1992). Reg.: its implementing regulation (d.P.R. 495/1992). c.: comma, the numbered paragraph of an article.

Full text of the Codice: www.aci.it/i-servizi/normative/codice-della-strada.html

Trap words

False statements on the exam often repeat a true rule and change a single word. These are the Italian words to read carefully in this topic. They stay in Italian because that is how they appear on the exam.

Words that appear in every topic

sempre
always. An absolute: the statement is true only if there is no exception at all.
«Keeping to the limit sempre (always) guarantees a safe speed»: false, in fog or on ice you go slower.
solo, soltanto, esclusivamente
only. It rules out every other case, so a single exception makes the statement false.
«The children sign is placed soltanto (only) outside primary schools»: false, it also appears near parks and sports grounds.
mai, in nessun caso
never, in no case. The statement is true only if the behaviour is not allowed in any situation.
«A driver with priority may in nessun caso (never) give it up»: false, they may, as long as they make it clear.
ovvero
In the language of the Codice it means «or» and introduces an alternative. It does not mean «that is».
Emergency stop: the vehicle has broken down ovvero (or) the driver must stop because they feel unwell (art. 157). Two separate cases; either one is enough.
obbligatoriamente, è obbligatorio
compulsory. A duty: it is not enough for the behaviour to be allowed, it must be required.
«Overtaking on the left is obbligatorio (compulsory) even past a driver turning left»: false, in that case you pass on the right.
è consentito, è ammesso
allowed, permitted. A permission, not a duty. «È consentito» does not mean «è obbligatorio», and the reverse.
«It is consentito (allowed) to pass on the right a driver who has signalled a left turn»: true, and art. 148(7) actually requires it.
di norma, di regola
as a rule, normally. It states the general rule, which allows exceptions, so the statement does not claim to hold in every case.
«Outside built up areas warning signs are placed di norma (as a rule) 150 metres ahead»: true, and a panel gives any other distance.
anche
also, even. It stretches the rule to one more case; ask whether that added case really belongs.
«The no parking sign anche (also) bans stopping»: false, a brief stop is still allowed under a no parking sign.
automaticamente, di per sé
automatically, in itself. It suggests an effect that applies on its own, when the effect usually depends on a sign or a specific condition.
«In fog the motorway limit automaticamente (automatically) drops to 90 km/h»: false, the automatic cut applies to rain and snow.
qualsiasi, qualunque, in ogni caso
any, in every case. It generalises; look for the category or situation the rule leaves out.
«The safe distance is the same at qualunque (any) speed»: false, it grows with speed.
corsia
lane. The part of the carriageway wide enough for one line of vehicles (art. 3).
A two way carriageway (carreggiata) usually has two corsie (lanes), one for each direction.
carreggiata
carriageway. The part of the road for vehicles, made up of one or more lanes (art. 3). It does not include the verge or the pavement.
A speed limit applies to the whole carreggiata (carriageway), not only to the lane next to the sign.
banchina
verge, hard strip. The strip beside the carriageway and outside it, not meant for driving (art. 3).
Outside built up areas you park off the carriageway, for example on a suitable banchina (verge) (art. 157(3)).
fermata
stop. A brief halt to let people get in or out, with the driver present and ready to move off (art. 157).
Pulling in to drop off a passenger and leaving straight away is a fermata (stop), not a sosta (parking).
sosta
parking. A prolonged halt during which the driver may leave the vehicle (art. 157).
A divieto di sosta (no parking) does not ban stopping; a divieto di fermata (no stopping) bans parking too.
arresto
halt. An interruption caused by traffic, such as a red light or a queue. It is not the driver's choice (art. 157).
Stopping at a red light is an arresto (halt); no stopping ban prevents it.

Check yourself

Three statements on the topic. Answer and see straight away whether the rule has stuck. These answers are not saved.

Question 1 of 1

  1. Per i conducenti maggiorenni non neopatentati il limite del tasso alcolemico è di 0,8 grammi per litro.

    For adult drivers who are not newly licensed the blood alcohol limit is 0.8 grams per litre.

  2. L'uso del telefono cellulare tenuto in mano è consentito se il veicolo procede lentamente.

    Holding a mobile phone is allowed when the vehicle is moving slowly.

  3. Chi beve una sola birra non supera mai il limite legale di alcolemia.

    Someone who drinks a single beer never goes over the legal alcohol limit.

Topic quiz: 21 statements

Untimed. After each answer you see the solution, the explanation, the trap words highlighted and a link back to the rule. At the end you get your score and can retest just the ones you missed.

Question 1 of 1

  1. Per i conducenti maggiorenni non neopatentati il limite del tasso alcolemico è di 0,8 grammi per litro.

    For adult drivers who are not newly licensed the blood alcohol limit is 0.8 grams per litre.

  2. Per i neopatentati nei primi tre anni e per chi ha meno di ventuno anni il tasso alcolemico deve essere pari a zero.

    New drivers in their first three years and drivers under twenty one must have zero blood alcohol.

  3. Bere un caffè elimina l'alcol già presente nel sangue.

    Drinking coffee removes alcohol already in the blood.

  4. L'alcol allunga i tempi di reazione e riduce la percezione del rischio.

    Alcohol lengthens reaction times and reduces the perception of risk.

  5. Alcuni farmaci da banco possono ridurre l'idoneità alla guida.

    Some over the counter medicines can reduce fitness to drive.

  6. Per contrastare la stanchezza in viaggio è sufficiente aprire il finestrino senza mai fermarsi.

    Opening the window is enough to fight fatigue on a long trip, with no need to stop.

  7. L'uso del telefono cellulare tenuto in mano è consentito se il veicolo procede lentamente.

    Holding a mobile phone is allowed when the vehicle is moving slowly.

  8. Le sostanze stupefacenti alterano la capacità di guida anche molte ore dopo l'assunzione.

    Drugs impair driving ability even many hours after being taken.

  9. È consentito conversare al telefono con il vivavoce, purché il conducente non impegni le mani.

    Talking on the phone hands free is allowed, provided the driver's hands stay free.

  10. Specchi retrovisori e sedile vanno regolati prima di mettersi in marcia.

    Mirrors and seat must be adjusted before setting off.

  11. La stanchezza riduce l'attenzione prima ancora che compaia la sensazione di sonno.

    Fatigue reduces attention before any feeling of sleepiness appears.

  12. Guidare dopo una notte senza dormire peggiora le prestazioni in modo confrontabile con l'effetto dell'alcol.

    Driving after a night without sleep worsens performance in a way comparable to the effect of alcohol.

  13. A parità di bevanda consumata l'alcolemia risulta diversa da persona a persona.

    For the same drink the resulting blood alcohol level differs from person to person.

  14. Il rifiuto di sottoporsi all'accertamento del tasso alcolemico è sanzionato.

    Refusing a blood alcohol test is an offence.

  15. La destinazione sul navigatore va impostata a veicolo fermo.

    The destination on a satnav must be entered while the vehicle is stationary.

  16. Guidare con un braccio fuori dal finestrino è consentito se la strada è dritta e libera.

    Driving with an arm out of the window is allowed on a straight, empty road.

  17. Chi beve una sola birra non supera mai il limite legale di alcolemia.

    Someone who drinks a single beer never goes over the legal alcohol limit.

  18. Gli effetti dell'alcol si esauriscono un'ora dopo l'ultimo bicchiere.

    The effects of alcohol wear off one hour after the last drink.

  19. La musica a volume molto alto non ha effetti sulla sicurezza della guida.

    Music at very high volume has no effect on driving safety.

  20. Un conducente professionale può guidare con un tasso alcolemico fino a 0,5 grammi per litro.

    A professional driver may drive with a blood alcohol level of up to 0.5 grams per litre.

  21. Se ci si sente assonnati conviene aumentare la velocità per arrivare prima a destinazione.

    When feeling sleepy it is better to speed up and reach the destination sooner.

What next

All exam topics

Educational content. For the official rules, see the Codice della Strada and legal notes.