Learning To Drive?                                               Pass your test with ease and confidence







Before learning to drive
Before learning to drive you need to make sure that you meet certain legal requirements.

You must have the following documents:
  • Driving Licence.
  • Insurance.
  • MOT (If car is older than 3 years)
  • Vehicle Registration Document.
  • Vehicle Excise Duty.

  • Learner drivers
    Learners driving a car must hold a valid provisional licence and must be supervised by someone who holds a full EC/EEA and has held it for
    at least three years for the type of car (automatic or manual) Also they must be at least 21 years old
  • Vehicles.
    Any vehicle driven by a learner must display red L plates to the front and rear of the car which must conform to legal specifications. In Wales,
    either red D plates, red L plates, or both, can be used. When not being driven by a learner (except on driving school vehicles) L plates should
    be removed or covered. Before driving unaccompanied, you must pass the theory test (if one is required) and then the practical driving test for
    the category of vehicle you wish to drive.
  • Fitness to Drive
    If you have any health condition that is likely to affect your driving, you must report it to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). If taking
    medication, check the instructions or ask your doctor or pharmacist. You must not drive under the influence of drugs or medicine. Using illegal
    drugs is highly dangerous so never take them before driving as the effects are unpredictable and can be even more severe than alcohol and
    may result in fatal or serious road crashes.
  • Eye sight
    You must be able to read a vehicle number plate from a distance of 20.5 metres (67 feet - about five car lengths) in good daylight and for a new
    style number plate from a distance of 20 metres (66 feet). If you need to wear glasses (or contact lenses) to do this, you must wear them at all
    times whilst driving. The police have the power to require a driver, at any time, to undertake an eyesight test in good daylight.
  • Drinking alcohol
    will seriously affect your judgement and abilities to drive a motor vehicle. You must not drive with a breath alcohol level higher than 35 µg
    /100ml or a blood alcohol level of more than 80 mg/100 ml. Alcohol takes time to leave your body; therefore you may be unfit to drive in the
    evening after drinking at lunchtime, or in the morning after drinking the previous evening. If you are going to drink, arrange another means of
    transport.
    For further information please or advice please  Click here

Choosing a driving instructor
If you are planning on learning to drive, before phoning around, try to find a reliable driving instructor so if for example you are at a college or a
university it may be useful to ask your friends who they learned with and were they happy with the training. If the same name keeps coming up with
satisfied ex or present clients, then this instructor is probably very good. The most important thing in choosing a driving instructor is feeling at ease
with that person.

Be aware of cheap lessons
If lesson prices are too cheap be aware that you may end up paying more in the long term. A good instructor who takes pride in what they do will
generally charge a higher price. A poor instructor who is desperate for work will usually charge a cheap price that is well below average for the area.
Assuming you get private practice in between your lessons, the DSA recommend that with 22 hours private practice, you should be looking to have 45
hours with a professional instructor. If you go to a cheap school, you could end up having a lot more lessons than you actually need, with an awful
amount of time sat by the side of the road but not actually driving. As a result, you could end up taking up to twice as many lessons. Also with cheaper
lessons you could find you are learning in an older car or the school economises on car maintenance.

Trainee driving instructors
Not every trainee instructor is bad as I have come across some very good ones, but care should be taken as there are one or two who are sadly let
down by the schools that they work for by not getting the support or the supervision that they should.  A trainee is recognised by a pink badge in the
passenger side of the windscreen. The trainee certificate is only valid for 6 months within which time the trainee has to pass their qualifying ADI part 3
exam. If you do use a trainee and feel comfortable with him or her stay with them

Approved Driving Instructor (ADI)
A qualified approved driving instructor (DSA ADI) is recognised by a green certificate positioned on the passenger side of the windscreen. These
certificates are valid for four years and the instructor is check tested by a Driving Standards Agency (DSA) supervising examiner and is graded.

Instructor grading
Once a driving instructor is qualified, they have to have a check test every few years where they get graded on a scale of one (lowest) to six (highest).
The grades are a reflection of how well they performed on a 1 hour check test lesson - usually a normal lesson which is conducted with a
representative of our governing body (the DSA) observing it from the back seat. If an instructor does not have a pupil then the check test is carried out
by role play.
                                                                                                                                                     Trainee                  Qualified ADI
    The grading is as follows:
    Grade 6: Instruction to a very high standard with no significant weaknesses
    Grade 5: A good overall standard of instruction with some minor weaknesses
    Grade 4: A competent performance with some minor deficiencies
    Grade 3: An inadequate performance
    Grade 2: Poor overall performance
    Grade 1: Overall standard of instruction extremely poor or dangerous

Grade 4 instructors
Whilst a 5 or a 6 are considered the better grades, a grade 4 instructor may be excellent at all other times, but like many of us is not keen on being
tested and gets nervous on their day! If you have a grade 4 instructor with a good attitude you will be fine - feeling comfortable with a grade 4 instructor
will usually mean you will probably learn more than if you are feeling uncomfortable with a grade 5 or 6 instructor.

Ungraded
Find out the reason for this - if an instructor has recently qualified then they will be ungraded, so you could ask them what mark they received on their
final exam (it is graded twice, so it will be between 4/4, 5/5, 4/5 etc with the grades being similar to the above). Again try them as they would not have
qualified if they were no good.

Cowboy instructors
If there is no badge at all in the bottom of the windscreen then the instructor is illegal and probably not insured. Report them to the police at once.

Driving tests

Theory and hazard perception test
The theory test is made up of two parts; the multiple choice part and the hazard perception part. You need to pass both parts to pass the theory test.
Once you have passed the theory test you can then apply to take your practical driving test.

For further details about the theory test please Click here

Practical driving test
Your driving test will start with an eyesight check and some vehicle safety questions. You will then start your practical driving test which will include
some specific manoeuvres. The driving part of your test will last about 40 minutes. Throughout the test your examiner will be looking for an overall
safe standard of driving, including when you are carrying out the set exercises. You can make up to 15 driving faults and still pass the test (16 or more
results in failure). However, if you commit one serious or dangerous fault you will fail the test.

For more information about the practical car test Click here

To pass
In order to pass the theory and hazard perception test you just need to study the Highway code and "Driving- The essential skills" Also it would be a
good idea and if you have access to a computer to practice the hazard perception test. There are a number of CD roms available in the high street
shops.

To pass the practical driving test just listen to your driving instructor, keep up regular lessons, take advice from your driving instructor as to how many
lessons you need and when to apply for your test.  Practice in between driving lessons if possible.

Hopefully you will be driving in a systematic style and able to perform naturally. On the day drive as though you are on a normal driving lesson.
Teach-2-Drive Driver and Instructor Training  Throughout Yorkshire  01904 700 106