Dispute with Driving Instructor

fivetide

I'd stick 'em for the bill for the test too if you need to pay again. Could be a good time to speak to the local press too...

As an aside, unless you only ever want to drive round in a circle for the rest of your life 'learning' the test route will do you no favours. Familiarity breeds contempt and all that. It is the reason most people have accidents close to home on roads they 'know'. Doing it without spending ages trying to learn it will keep you on your toes and I would say, give you a real sense that you are ready for the road.

5t.

jase1

I don't remember learning any test routes when I was preparing for my test.

Inactive

jase1 wrote: »

I don't remember learning any test routes when I was preparing for my test.

You probably had a decent instructor.;)

moneytroll

Zanzibar wrote: »

Who do you make your payments to - the driver or the school? If its the school then they are providing the service. What is the school?

The school. I paid them for 40 lessons in advance. If I paid the teacher directly I could at least withhold the monies.
The school is one of the biggest in UK, if not the biggest. (Is it ok to disclose the name here?)
And previously, I only had good experiences with them. I am convinced I got unlucky with the instructor.

With regards to the route: it is not unusual to drive once or twice to the test centre and familiarise yourself with the area, try some roundabouts and be aware of speed limit signs. It doesn't mean you drive precisely a predetermined way all the time. Every test centre has 20 routes or so. We were never driving within 10 miles of the area, until the day she took me to the centre and got lost.

moneytroll

Inactive wrote: »

I somehow doubt that you can to be honest, it looks like an " he said/she said " scenario to me.

There are records she was late (I have witnesses and there are phone calls), there are records we arrived late at the test centre and there are records that she never taught in the area, so likely to not know the way.
All she is saying, as a counter argument, that I was "abusive" and "went the wrong way myself" even though she told me to go somewhere else.
If anyone from the school bothered giving this argument any thought, it would be quite clear that it makes no sense. It is not in my interest to get lost.

Norman_Castle

My school explained that their instructors are self-employed and the school only "arranges things" (this school is one of the largest UK driving schools with apparently the best reputation).

Any reputable driving school should take responsibility for instructors supplied by them. Make a list of all losses and contact the school again. If you have evidence of their failings you could claim through the small claims court.

moneytroll

Norman_Castle wrote: »

Any reputable driving school should take responsibility for instructors supplied by them. Make a list of all losses and contact the school again. If you have evidence of their failings you could claim through the small claims court.

Yes, I was planning on doing that if the complaint letter was going to be dismissed. Is there not a step inbetween? Would writing to DSA not result in something? I mean is somebody supervising the schools?

choc_mouse

moneytroll wrote: »

The school is one of the biggest in UK, if not the biggest. (Is it ok to disclose the name here?)

Name and shame!

My instructor was late for my first test but I called the driving school and the manager came out immediately to pick me up. He said they would not charge me for the 2 hours whether I passed or not. The response was reasonable and it seemed like an honest mistake (miscommunication with the instructor or he simply forgot???). This was BSM.

It seems the place administering lessons for your school aren't that understanding. I would suggest visiting in person (if viable) to discuss with the manager. Hopefully they will see that you are not abusive and that you are not talking BS.

moneytroll

choc_mouse wrote: »

Name and shame!

My instructor was late for my first test but I called the driving school and the manager came out immediately to pick me up. He said they would not charge me for the 2 hours whether I passed or not. The response was reasonable and it seemed like an honest mistake (miscommunication with the instructor or he simply forgot???). This was BSM.

So is mine :mad: But it just shows that I was unlucky, I think, not that the school is generally bad.
This is exactly the kind of thing/service I would expect though (your above post). But I think the instructor was terrified of not getting paid (presumably BSM would take it out of the instructor's pocket) that's why things are being made up aggressively to cover.

spugzbunny

I think you can complain to the association of driving instructors. http://www.driving.org/
You should complain both about the instructor and the school.

I would also continue to voice my complaint to BSM and ask them to substantiate their claims that you were aggressive. The more fuss you kick up the more likely it is they will take it seriously