Mozambique INATRO Professional Driving Licence Theory common mistakes
Mozambique INATRO Professional Driving Licence Theory · Understand the traps and how to avoid them.
Treating the priority-to-the-right rule as absolute and answering that a vehicle on the right always goes first, even at a junction where a stop sign, give-way line, traffic light or a road with priority status governs the situation.
Candidates memorise the general rule from the Código da Estrada in isolation and never practise matching it against the exceptions, so under time pressure they apply the default reflexively instead of reading the signage and markings in the scenario.
What to do instead
Build a decision checklist you run in this order for every junction question: traffic light or stop/give-way sign first, then road markings, then road classification (priority road vs ordinary), and only then the default right-hand rule. Practise ten mixed junction scenarios per session and write down which element decided the answer.
Confusing the meaning of vertical signs that look similar, for example prohibition signs versus mandatory signs (round red border versus round blue), danger signs versus regulatory signs (triangular versus circular), and the different supplementary plates that change a sign's scope.
Signs are often learned as isolated pictures rather than by shape and colour families, so recognition collapses when the question describes a sign in words or shows it alongside a similar one.
What to do instead
Learn the shape-and-colour grammar first (triangle = danger, circle red border = prohibition, circle blue = obligation, rectangle = information or guidance), then attach specific signs to each family. Make flashcards that pair a written description with the correct family and the exact action required.
Reading road markings and signals as decoration and answering on the basis of the sign alone, missing that a solid centre line forbids crossing, that a stop line requires a full stop, or that a police officer's signals override both lights and signs.
Markings and hand signals receive less study time than pictorial signs, and candidates underestimate the hierarchy of authority between officers, temporary signals, traffic lights and markings.
What to do instead
Memorise the hierarchy explicitly: officer > temporary roadworks signals > traffic lights > signs > markings > general rules. Drill marking types (solid, broken, double, yellow, zigzag, stop and give-way lines) with a one-line rule for each, and practise questions where two sources of authority conflict.
Answering safe-driving questions with the legally permitted behaviour rather than the defensive one, for example choosing the speed limit instead of a safe speed for rain, night, a blind crest or a heavy vehicle, or failing to maintain a two-second-plus following gap.
Candidates prepare for a rules test and treat safety questions as if there were a single legal answer, so they pick the maximum allowed rather than the appropriate response to the hazard described.
What to do instead
When a question mentions weather, visibility, load, road surface or a vulnerable road user, treat the legal limit as irrelevant and choose the option that reduces risk. Train the following-distance rule (at least two seconds in dry conditions, double in rain, more with a loaded vehicle) and the habit of naming the hazard before choosing.
Skipping pre-trip checks in scenario questions, for example starting a journey with a question that describes low tyre tread, a warning lamp, an insecure load or an untested braking system, and answering as if the trip should proceed normally.
Vehicle knowledge is studied as component theory (what a turbocharger does) rather than as a go/no-go decision, so candidates do not connect a defect to the professional duty to refuse or rectify before departure.
What to do instead
Learn the daily walk-around check as a fixed sequence: tyres and pressures, lights and indicators, brakes and air pressure, fluids and leaks, mirrors, load and restraints, documents. For any defect question, answer 'do not depart until rectified or reported' unless the question explicitly concerns a permitted temporary measure.
Treating driving hours and rest as a memory test of numbers only, and mixing up daily driving limits, continuous driving before a break, minimum break length, daily and weekly rest, and when a tachograph record must be produced.
The figures are similar and are revised without a structure, so under exam pressure the candidate swaps one limit for another or confuses a break with a rest period.
What to do instead
Draw a single timeline sheet showing continuous driving, required break, daily driving, daily rest and weekly rest as separate labelled blocks, and revise from that sheet rather than from lists. Attach each number to its purpose (break = recovery within the day; rest = daily recovery) so the wrong number feels wrong.
Giving first-aid and accident-response answers that reflect film-style heroics: moving an injured motorcyclist immediately, removing a helmet, giving food or drink to a casualty, or omitting scene protection and the emergency call.
Candidates rely on general intuition rather than the protect-alert-rescue sequence, and they do not know which interventions are contraindicated for suspected spinal injury or unconscious casualties.
What to do instead
Memorise the fixed order: secure the scene and warn other traffic, call emergency services with location and casualty count, then provide only the care you are trained for. Learn the short contraindication list (do not move a suspected spinal casualty unless there is fire or traffic danger, do not remove a helmet, do not give drink to an unconscious or seriously injured person) and drill it until automatic.
Ignoring eco-driving technique in questions about fuel use and emissions, choosing aggressive acceleration, late braking, prolonged idling or incorrect gear selection, and failing to recognise that anticipation and steady speed are the scored behaviours.
Eco-driving is treated as a soft topic and skimmed, so candidates answer from habit rather than from the techniques the exam rewards.
What to do instead
Learn the standard eco-driving set: anticipate and read the road ahead, accelerate smoothly and shift up early, keep a steady speed, use engine braking and plan stops, switch off during long waits, and maintain correct tyre pressures. Practise by explaining each technique in terms of fuel saved and emissions avoided.
Confusing document and insurance obligations, for example believing a compulsory third-party motor insurance policy covers damage to the insured vehicle, or not knowing which documents a professional driver must carry and keep valid and what happens when they expire.
Administrative topics are revised last and superficially, and the distinction between liability to third parties and own-damage cover is blurred by everyday conversation.
What to do instead
Build a two-column table: what the compulsory third-party policy covers (injury and property damage caused to others) versus what requires optional cover. Separately list the documents to carry (licence, vehicle registration, insurance proof, transport and tachograph records as applicable) with the consequence of each being missing or expired.
Securing loads and handling dangerous goods by intuition, for example assuming that a heavy load holds itself in place, that ropes are adequate without rated restraints, or that any vehicle may carry dangerous goods without specific marking, documentation or training.
Load securing and dangerous goods are covered at basic-awareness level, so candidates assume the questions are trivial and do not learn the principles of restraint, weight distribution, axle limits or hazard identification.
What to do instead
Learn the core principles: restraint must resist forward, rearward and lateral forces, load must be distributed within axle and gross limits, and the load must not obscure lights, plates or mirrors. For dangerous goods, memorise that carriage requires appropriate training, documentation, placarding and equipment, and that you must be able to identify a hazard from its label and the transport document before answering.