Handheld devices — New Hampshire Permit Test

Handheld devices on the New Hampshire permit test — 4 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.

The rules

Under RSA 265:79-c no person driving a moving vehicle, or temporarily halted in traffic, may use a hand-held mobile electronic device capable of voice or data communication.

The law covers the moment at a red light as well as the moment at speed, because a driver stopped in traffic is about to be moving again.

no person, while driving a moving motor vehicle upon a way or temporarily halted in traffic for a traffic control device, or other momentary delay, shall use any hand-held mobile electronic device capable of providing voice or data communication, including but not limited to:
New Hampshire Driver's Manual, p.7

The hand-held device ban covers reading, composing, viewing or posting an electronic message.

Reading counts as much as typing. The eyes are off the road either way, and that is the part that causes the crash.

including but not limited to: reading, composing, viewing, or posting any electronic message
New Hampshire Driver's Manual, p.7

The hand-held device ban covers inputting information into a global positioning system or navigation device.

Typing an address takes longer than a text message, and drivers do it while moving because they think of it as part of driving.

inputting information into a global positioning system or navigation device
New Hampshire Driver's Manual, p.7

An operator holding a phone or other voice-capable device in the immediate proximity of their ear while the vehicle is in motion is presumed to be engaging in a call.

Without the presumption the law would be unenforceable, because nobody can prove from outside the car what the driver was doing.

holds a cellular telephone or other electronic device capable of voice communication in the immediate proximity of his or her ear while such vehicle is in motion is presumed to be engaging in a call.
New Hampshire Driver's Manual, p.8

On the test

When does the hand-held device ban apply?

While moving and while temporarily halted in traffic. The law covers the moment at a red light as well as the moment at speed, because a driver stopped in traffic is about to be moving again. New Hampshire Driver's Manual, p.7: “no person, while driving a moving motor vehicle upon a way or temporarily halted in traffic for a traffic control device, or other momentary delay, shall use any hand-held mobile electronic device capable of providing voice or data communication, including but not limited to:”

How this works

Most practice tests hand you a bank of questions and leave the manual somewhere else. This one puts them together.

You read one law and the reason behind it, then answer a question on that law while it is still fresh. Get it right and you move on; get it wrong and you have found the gap while it is cheap to fix, not on the morning of the exam.

Learning one rule at a time, and proving it immediately, is what turns a manual you skimmed into something you actually know — and it makes studying feel like getting somewhere rather than like waiting to find out.

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Where these come from

Every rule here is checked against New Hampshire Driver's Manual, published by the New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-09-16.