We'd like to remind Forumites to please avoid political debate on the Forum... Read More »
📨 Have you signed up to the Forum's new Email Digest yet? Get a selection of trending threads sent straight to your inbox daily, weekly or monthly!
RoSPA or IAM?
Options
Comments
-
Thanks for the replies everyone, some interesting comments and viewpoints to consider.
I think the advanced driving courses are interesting and useful. I was lucky enough to have a really good intructor when I did my CBT motorcycle training many years ago, he gave me some very useful tips regarding road positioning and anticipating what cars far ahead might do. I'm also thinking about some advacnced driving lessons where the car is equipped and taken into a wet skid pan. Looks like fun, but I guess somewhat expensive.0 -
Hello
I'm a group secretary for an IAM group (motorcycle) and I've done ROSPA as well.
I would say that purely on the coaching side, ROSPA has a few things going for it.
They have the graded pass system, plus retests every 3 years which helps keep your standards up (the IAM is a one-off).
Plus there is a slightly different emphasis on the coaching. On the motorcycle side in a nutshell I would say IAM is about progress and ROSPA is about safety.
I think ROSPA do aim for a slightly higher standard because they are aiming for gold and not just a pass. The IAM would probably disagree, but I think there is more to aim for.
Unfortunately I do recognise some of the "superiroty complex" comments about the IAM which I havent' picked up at ROSPA.
But I would definitely encourage you to check out your local groups.
There may be definite differences in costs, size, availability and activity levels.
I know for example that one IAM group has funding for many places from their local coucil.
On the the whole I would say IAM is a bit more expensive and you don't get the free retest but the charges vary by group so you need to check it out at local level.
The insurance benefit is not huge.
IAM use IAM surety which is a brand of Adelaide insurance.
Their policy is automatically class 1 so it covers all observing activity.
ROSPA have an offer with Adrian Flux who guarantee 25% off however this is not on a like-for-like basis so it's a bit of a con IMO (they got mine down, but only by increasing my excess - well a 5 year old can do that !!! so I was rather cross).
I am with ebike insurance as they have guaranteee my NCD for life, so even though I'm a member of both, I found a more suitable (not necessarily cheapest) policy elsewhere.
Personally I wouldn't sell the insurance as a major benefit.
Everyone I know that has done it has certainly considered it worthwhile and in some cases transforming.
I don't agree you can just do it from a book, although books and DVDs can be a useful aid.
You might wonder why I support IAM and not ROSPA. Well it's partly to do with location as the IAM group is more local to me, but it's also because the local IAM group is much more active, so whilst the ROSPA coaching is arguably superior, they are less active than the local IAM group and actually contribute less in terms of overall safety in my area, so what happens in your actual locality is very important. You might find one group appeals to you much more than another.0
This discussion has been closed.
Confirm your email address to Create Threads and Reply

Categories
- All Categories
- 351.1K Banking & Borrowing
- 253.2K Reduce Debt & Boost Income
- 453.6K Spending & Discounts
- 244.1K Work, Benefits & Business
- 599.1K Mortgages, Homes & Bills
- 177K Life & Family
- 257.4K Travel & Transport
- 1.5M Hobbies & Leisure
- 16.1K Discuss & Feedback
- 37.6K Read-Only Boards