Deer and animals — Virginia Permit Test
Deer and animals on the Virginia permit test — 4 rules, each with the reason behind it and a question on it while it is fresh.
The rules
If a collision with a deer or another large animal cannot be avoided, do not swerve. Brake firmly, stay in your lane and come to a controlled stop.
Swerving takes you into oncoming traffic or off the road, and hitting a tree or another car is far worse than hitting a deer.
Be alert for deer and other large animals at dusk and dawn, and especially in the fall.
These are the hours when the animals move and the light is worst, so the two risks arrive together.
Slow down if you see a large animal near or crossing the road. They frequently travel in groups, so others are likely nearby.
The one you can see is rarely alone, and the second animal usually comes out where you have already looked.
Use the horn to scare a large animal away, and report the collision to law enforcement if you hit one.
The report is what puts the collision on record, and your insurer will want that record before paying for the damage.
On the test
What should a driver do when a collision with a deer is unavoidable?
Brake firmly and stay in your lane. Swerving takes you into oncoming traffic or off the road, and hitting a tree or another car is far worse than hitting a deer.
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.
Where these come from
Every rule here is checked against Virginia Driver’s Manual, published by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, and against the state code itself. Last checked 2026-09-02.
- https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/licenses-ids/exams/know-exam
- https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/sites/default/files/forms/dmv39.pdf
- https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/sites/default/files/documents/dmv39i.pdf
- https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/licenses-ids/learners/apply
- https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/licenses-ids/learners/restrictions
- https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/section46.2-870/
- https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/section46.2-873/
- https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/section46.2-874/
- https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title46.2/section46.2-862/