How To Find A Good Driving Instructor?

Posted on June 8th, 2010 by admin, under Advice for Learner Drivers.

Are you looking for a driving instructor? Or maybe you are upset about your current one and craving more positive and effective learning? Anyway, the quality of tuition your instructor is capable of providing is one of the keys to your success at the driving test. When it comes down to searching for a qualified, reliable and safe driving instructor, there is no need to rush it. The aim of this post is to brief you on some musts when choosing a good driving instructor.

ADI vs. PDI

For starters, any learner driver must know what the abbreviations above stand for. ADI is an Approved Driving Instructor. This qualification means a person has passed exams to be a professional driving instructor and is registered with the Driving Standards Agency (DSA). ADIs display their green licence (octagon) on the windscreen of their tuition vehicles. PDI stands for Potential Driving Instructors. They are licenced instructors under training who are allowed by the DSA to provide training for payment. PDIs must display their pink licence (triangle) on the windscreen of their tuition vehicles. You can understand the difference between “green and pink” for yourself. Obviously, ADIs charge more for driving lessons because they are more experienced.

How much?

The majority of learners start shopping for driving lessons with this question in mind. This approach actually turns your shopping into looking for the cheapest option. But if you want to find a good driving instructor, that option would not suit you at all. You should run away from two extremes – overpriced driving lessons and underpriced “special offers”. The national average for a driving lessonis currently around £17-£20. So make sure you shop around for the average.

Pass Guarantee

There is no such thing as pass guarantee. However, it is wise to ask your potentialdriving instructor about his or her driving test pass rate. Of course, you have no way of checking whether quoted pass rate is true. Yet, it is a good way of spotting a driving instructor who makes unreliable statements. The national driving testpass rate is 45.65%. So if your driving instructor is able to provide anything near this figure, you are in good hands.

What Is Your Grade?

Asking a driving instructor about his or her grade is one of the best ways to assess their competence. Every four years ADIs are graded by the DSA for the quality of driving tuition. Six point scale is used for assessment. Look for the following grades:

• grade 4 is competent
• grade 5 is good
• grade 6 is a very high standard

We’ve covered four basic things to consider while choosing a driving instructor. Although qualification, driving lesson cost, pass rate and instructor’s grade are all very important and relevant choice factors, personal feel is crucial. Your driving instructor can be a 6-grade ADI with the highest pass rate, but if you don’t seem to hit it off well, you probably need to try another one.