Great Ways To Cut The Cost Of Learning To Drive Hunt

ashy_mashy

Hey all,

Are there any good driving lesson offers out there at the moment?
I keep delaying my lessons as things keep coming up. I had 15 lessons last summer and 7 the summer before that and because I never stuck to it, I may have to start again but this time I'm looking to finish it for good and get my licence. But being a student I really need a good deal...

Penny-Wise_4

Can you still use more than one Tesco deals BSM learner pack? I’ve been saving up my points and now notice on line that it says 1 per learner. I’ve noticed that some on here have used more than one per learner in the past but has anyone used more than one Tesco/BSM learner pack recently?

BTW also noticed on the Tesco site that on 15th February they are stopping both the 1 lesson and the 6 lesson pack and just having 4 lesson packs .

So if they are cracking down on people using more than one pack & reducing the number of hours you can get it may best to buy the 6 lesson packs before 15th Feb.

:money:

Peakma

Just wanted to say to anyone still learning,keep at it.I was learning on and off for years,and finally stuck at it and passed 3rd time in October,it is so good to be able to get myself and kids around independently,just to be able to get to the neighboring villages for the doctors,dentists etc,that aren't on the bus route is great.
So don't give up and don't think your passing day will never come,because it is worth sticking at,and once done,you do kind of forget what a struggle it was to achieve.I am still a new driver,and only today I had an awkward scary moment getting out of a cramped car park lots of reversing then 1st,and I could feel people watching me make a bit of a balls-up of it(probably mostly my own paranoia!) but the learning process keeps going way after the passing the test.
Any way good luck to everyone learning,I also found this site quite useful for tips and advice,and enjoyed reading other peoples test results.
http://2passforum.co.uk/phpBB2/index.php?sid=5edb36b522ec7fd9cba6627a900ba4fc

ksh123

Pontoon wrote:

I checked out Arnold Clark for this about 3 months ago. I got quoted £9 per hour for sual controls with an extra charge of about 30p I think it was for every mile over 30 miles. Not that this would be an issue as a beginner isn't likely to be going that far at first.

Hope these help there are more locations, linked if you go here.
Central Scotland
england
Terms and Conditions

I am very interested in this for helping my daughter to practice. Does anyone know what the insurance situation is? i.e. does she need her own?
thanks

cajef

As an ex driving instructor (recently retired) I would advise anyone looking for an instructor to ask around friends, family and aquaintances for recommendations. A good instructor will rarely have to advertise for work, I never did, all my pupils came from recommendations and I always had a full diary. Having a good pass rate means nothing, some may have passed their test at the fourth or fifth attempt, look for someone with a high FIRST time pass rate, 66% or more. Also a good instructor should be willing and happy to produce proof of his pass rates and will provide all the necessary books and CD's for the theory and hazard perception tests free of charge.

I worked for BSM for several years, before going independent, one of the main reasons independent instructors are cheaper then the larger schools is because they do not have to factor the costs of franchise fees, offices and non-instructor staff salaries into their lesson fees.

It is not in the interest of a good instructor to try and to rip you off with unnecessary lessons but he should be honest with you to give you a chance of passing first time. There are a lot of bad instructors around, both independent and in the national driving schools, if you have paid for a block of ten lessons and you are not happy ask for a change of instructor or if you are with an independent school have your ten lessons then change, do not stay with someone your either not comfortable with, or you think is not giving you decent instruction, remember you are the customer.

hoopstars

I have a daughter who is just coming up to 17, I've used my Tesco clubcard points to buy the 6 lessons etc pack. She has used her simulator voucher and booked her 6 lessons ready for next month, my sister has offered to use her Tesco points to buy the new 4 lesson pack to give to my daughter. I phoned BSM to check if I would be able to use more than one voucher and they said that until the last few months that was ok but now you can only use one Tesco voucher per pupil (even if they are from different Tesco offers).
I have also spent a long time looking for insurance, as I've said my daughter isn't 17 until next month and obviously only has a provisional licence but she has found a car and I found that Admiral were the cheapest at £602 (£150 excess) Third Party Fire & Theft for a 1.4Corsa in my daughters name with myself and her Dad as named drivers (it got cheaper as each of us was added). This is for a 10 month accelerated policy i.e. after 10 months she will have 1 years no claims and they will confirm this if we wish to change companies at the end of the policy.
I also tried Best Advice which was recommended on another forum (can't remember which one at the mo!) and they came up with £677 (£100 excess TPF&T)for a year both included legal protection and taxes.
I hope this might be of help as I know people who have accepted policies costing over £1000.

The_Undercover_ADI

I'll agree with cajef on this one - recommendations are the best way to go. Many of the posters have suggested the 2pass site, and if you can't get a recommendation asking through friends, then the forum on there is an excellent way of going about it.

Be wary of the really cheap lesson offers out there - you will often be doing very little driving for the money you pay, though free lessons are obviously a bonus! A good instructor will be able to get you through your test in half the time of a bad one (50% saving), so if they cost 25% more per lesson (£20/hour instead of £16, you'll still be quids in.

SarkyMarky

xlt_hunter wrote:

I have been driving for somewhat 5 years now and always believe this quote

"The best drivers never stop learning after they past their test" - this is true for me at the moment. Now I am looking to take further lessons not on cars but on Lorries in section C and C+E.

The instructors I had in Newbury wasn't pleasent at all, got into a 207 and hated it. He used my time and money to have my lessons to pick up the next learner etc... forget that only used him for a few times. Then when I moved to up north I got a another instructor. By far a better person all round, very pleased that he worked onto a 2hour lesson 1to1, I can only suggest that newbies to car driving to go onto the 2hr rule as you will get the swing into things and get better vaule for money. Also once a week is a min! must keep it up to gain the knowledge, no point in doing a few and then dropping off and having to start again. Don't always go for the cheapest - ask about the pass rate to show how good the guy/girl is

Like I mention above and have been driving for 5 years, I am now foucing on lorry driving. Cat C lession/test funding has been supplied already for myself by the skills council (EU Gov) to get young adults (I am 23) in the indurstry of truck driving. I had to do the theroy again (more advance with the regs of LGV Driving + Driving Hour Law) with the DSA with a pass (flying colours) and full medical without problems with the local doctor (must be taken first and then sent to DVLA). I got my lessons starting in 1 weeks time over the weekend period in total 4 hours on a friday and 8 hours on each sat and sun with the full DSA test on Monday morning :eek: The thought of cramming everything into what feels like 3 days!!

But to go further that Cat C to C+E (the big lorries) I have had a price of £1070 for 20 hours of lessons (1to1) and with the DSA test at the end for the license. I am not too sure if this vaule for money as there is 2/3 firms offering HGV/LGV training in the area

Does the quote above sounds about right for HGV C+E training and test?

Mike

Hi Mike,
i live in yorkshire and took my C+E in july last year after 4 years of driving Class C, it cost me just over £650 for 16 hours of tuition including DSA test fee's for C+E and around £850 for 20 hours class C including theory test, medical and application fees for the provisional licence.

All together around £1500 for both tests is, i think, good value.i got quotes from numerous different companies locally and nationaly and found some that wanted more than this for each "CLASS" on a fixed price basis.

The company i chose was based in Doncaster and was recommended to me by 5 different people who had trained with them in the past.

They will take you out for an asessment drive of around 1 1/2 hours to see how good a driver you are and figure out how many lessons you will need, i was told 20 hours for my C+E but after the first 4 hour lesson was told i was picking it up quickly and they dropped 4 hours which saved me money!:j

How did you manage to get funding? i looked all over and was told that there was no funding available, may have been because i was working or lived in the wrong area?

what you have to remember is that you are not learning to drive, you can already do this if you have a car licence, you are just adapting your driving skills for a bigger vehicle, once you get over the initial shock of being higher up/ longer and wider than a car its actually quite easy. the hardest bit is trying to figure out what other road users are going to do around you, and believe me there are some idiots on the roads:mad: :eek:

Once you pass the hard part is finding someone who will employ you with no experience, i would recommend signing up with 2 or 3 driving agencies, when i first passed my C+E i was told time and again "sorry we can only employ you after 2 years experience for insurance purpose's" but the first job i got with an agency was for EDDIE STOBBART driving a double deck!:eek:

Since september ive been driving for a local car transport company delivering new and used cars all other the country, they were very helpful and understanding over the " no experience" thing and have helped alot. i have learnt more since passing than i did on any lesson,

Good luck with your test, let me know how you get on and if you need any advice on who to ask about lessons or agencies,
Regards Mark :beer:

SarkyMarky

Minerva69 wrote:

I'm looking for an instructor in the Shipley/Bradford area of West Yorkshire who will teach in an automatic car. I'm really struggling to find one, does anyone know of anybody?

I posted on the "I wanna buy-it or do-it" forum and somebody pointed me to http://www.disableddrivingin-yorkshire.co.uk/index.html but I'm not disabled and I can't get hold of them anyway. I was supposedly on the waiting list for lessons with https://www.dtic.net but they've just told me they no longer do automatic lessons, even though they kept me waiting for 8 weeks :mad:

why do your test in an automatic if you don't need too? :rolleyes: this will limit you to driving automatics for ever unless you take another test, surely it would be better and cheaper learn in a manual car and then if you wished you could drive anything?

Minerva69

SarkyMarky wrote:

why do your test in an automatic if you don't need too? :rolleyes: this will limit you to driving automatics for ever unless you take another test, surely it would be better and cheaper learn in a manual car and then if you wished you could drive anything?

There's a very good thread on the 2Pass learner drivers forum about this, maybe you should go and join in there I don't feel I will be "limited" to driving automatics for ever - I actually WANT to drive an auto. It doesn't take as long to learn in an auto (so it's cheaper) and there are the added advantages of not stalling, not rolling backwards on hills etc. I tried manual a couple of years ago, it wasn't for me but my instructor was rubbish (that's another story). Why is it people in the UK are so set on driving manuals when many other countries don't drive them anymore?

I found a good instructor in the end and I've been learning in an auto since November and I absolutely love it. Nearly covered all the syllabus already and I think I'll be taking my test sooner than I would have if I'd learnt in a manual. Sorry SarkyMarky, but you're not going to get me to change my mind!