diff --git a/core/src/main/java/org/testcontainers/dockerclient/DockerClientProviderStrategy.java b/core/src/main/java/org/testcontainers/dockerclient/DockerClientProviderStrategy.java
index 7b0aaafc169..68783e7c494 100644
--- a/core/src/main/java/org/testcontainers/dockerclient/DockerClientProviderStrategy.java
+++ b/core/src/main/java/org/testcontainers/dockerclient/DockerClientProviderStrategy.java
@@ -208,6 +208,7 @@ protected boolean test() {
         try (Socket socket = socketProvider.call()) {
             Awaitility
                 .await()
+                .dontCatchUncaughtExceptions() // avoid mutating the global uncaught exception handler, see #11483
                 .atMost(TestcontainersConfiguration.getInstance().getClientPingTimeout(), TimeUnit.SECONDS) // timeout after configured duration
                 .pollInterval(Duration.ofMillis(200)) // check state every 200ms
                 .pollDelay(Duration.ofSeconds(0)) // start checking immediately
diff --git a/core/src/test/java/org/testcontainers/dockerclient/AwaitilityUncaughtExceptionHandlerTest.java b/core/src/test/java/org/testcontainers/dockerclient/AwaitilityUncaughtExceptionHandlerTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..9b30f785e6b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/core/src/test/java/org/testcontainers/dockerclient/AwaitilityUncaughtExceptionHandlerTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+package org.testcontainers.dockerclient;
+
+import org.awaitility.Awaitility;
+import org.junit.jupiter.api.Test;
+
+import java.lang.Thread.UncaughtExceptionHandler;
+import java.time.Duration;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicReference;
+
+import static org.assertj.core.api.Assertions.assertThat;
+
+/**
+ * Regression test for <a href="https://github.com/testcontainers/testcontainers-java/issues/11483">#11483</a>.
+ *
+ * <p>{@code DockerClientProviderStrategy.test()} pings the Docker socket through an executor-backed
+ * {@code Awaitility.await()...untilAsserted(...)}. With Awaitility's default (uncaught-exception catching enabled),
+ * Awaitility installs its own {@link UncaughtExceptionHandler} as the JVM-global default handler for the duration of
+ * that await, hijacking the application's handler (see the stack trace in the issue). The probed condition runs on a
+ * single dedicated thread and never relies on exceptions surfacing from other threads, so the catching provides no
+ * value here and the strategy opts out via {@code dontCatchUncaughtExceptions()}.
+ */
+class AwaitilityUncaughtExceptionHandlerTest {
+
+    private static final UncaughtExceptionHandler SENTINEL = (thread, throwable) -> {};
+
+    @Test
+    void defaultExecutorPollingHijacksTheGlobalHandler() {
+        // Documents the broken behaviour: while the await runs, the global handler is no longer the application's one.
+        assertThat(handlerSeenWhilePolling(Awaitility.await())).isNotSameAs(SENTINEL);
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    void dontCatchUncaughtExceptionsKeepsTheGlobalHandler() {
+        // The fix applied in DockerClientProviderStrategy#test(): the application's handler stays in place throughout.
+        assertThat(handlerSeenWhilePolling(Awaitility.await().dontCatchUncaughtExceptions())).isSameAs(SENTINEL);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Installs {@link #SENTINEL} as the global default handler, then drives an executor-backed await exactly as
+     * {@code DockerClientProviderStrategy#test()} does, and returns the handler that was active <em>while</em> polling.
+     */
+    private static UncaughtExceptionHandler handlerSeenWhilePolling(org.awaitility.core.ConditionFactory factory) {
+        UncaughtExceptionHandler original = Thread.getDefaultUncaughtExceptionHandler();
+        Thread.setDefaultUncaughtExceptionHandler(SENTINEL);
+        AtomicReference<UncaughtExceptionHandler> observed = new AtomicReference<>();
+        try {
+            factory
+                .atMost(5, TimeUnit.SECONDS)
+                .pollInterval(Duration.ofMillis(10))
+                .pollDelay(Duration.ZERO)
+                .untilAsserted(() -> observed.set(Thread.getDefaultUncaughtExceptionHandler()));
+        } finally {
+            Thread.setDefaultUncaughtExceptionHandler(original);
+        }
+        return observed.get();
+    }
+}