Traffic Laws, Licensing and Vehicle Documentation
This domain tests how you earn and keep the right to drive in The Gambia, what papers must travel with the vehicle, and which offences end a test or a licence. Questions here are often about documents that have quietly expired.
Getting and holding a licence
- The route runs through a provisional or learner licence, a theory test on road signs and rules, and a practical driving test with a licensed examiner.
- Expect to provide proof of identity and age, photographs, a medical and eyesight check, and the prescribed fees.
- Licences are issued by class: private car, motorcycle, light goods, heavy goods, and passenger service vehicle (PSV). You may only drive the class you hold.
- Learner conditions usually include displaying L plates and being accompanied by a fully licensed driver of the same class. Obey any conditions printed on the licence.
- Carry your licence whenever driving and renew it before the expiry date; an expired licence is no licence.
Documents that must be in the vehicle
- Driving licence for the class being driven.
- Vehicle registration document (logbook).
- Valid insurance certificate - third-party cover is compulsory.
- Roadworthiness or vehicle inspection certificate where required for that vehicle. If you cannot produce documents at a checkpoint, you may be required to present them at a police station within the period the officer allows.
Insurance
Third-party cover pays for injury and damage you cause to other people and their property; it does not repair your own car. Comprehensive cover adds your own vehicle. Cover lapses on the expiry date, whether or not a renewal is "being arranged".
Offences to know
Driving without a licence or while disqualified; driving uninsured; expired registration or inspection; an unroadworthy vehicle (bald tyres, failed lights or brakes); using a hand-held phone; carrying unrestrained children; overloading or an unsecured load; illegal modifications. Penalties range from on-the-spot fines to court fines, disqualification and impoundment.
Worked example
At a checkpoint your insurance expired last week and the broker says renewal is "pending". You are uninsured: the policy lapsed at midnight on the expiry date and the duty to renew is yours. Expect a fine and possible impoundment, and you should not continue driving the vehicle.
Traps that cost marks
- Treating a payment receipt as proof of insurance.
- Confusing the logbook (who the vehicle is registered to) with proof of ownership or roadworthiness.
- Assuming a car licence covers a motorcycle or a passenger vehicle.