Answer: If you believe you have any reason to complain about the conduct of any driving instructor, or the driving school they are associated with, your first step is to read the driving school’s Terms and Conditions and complain to the driving school directly. A phone call might be enough to put things right for you, but if not, or if your complaint is particularly serious, you should write to the owner of the driving school at the address on their website, giving full details of the issue you are complaining about and what it is you want to put the matter right.
If you are still unhappy with the response you receive, you can write to:
The Register of ADIs
Driving Standards Agency
PO Box 280
Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
NE99 1FP
or you can telephone them on 0300 200 1122.
Answer: To be “licensed”, (as a PDI, or “Potential” Driving Instructor), means that the instructor has yet to pass the final exam leading to full qualification as a driving instructor, although if they have been given the right amount of quality training, they should be every bit as proficient as, (and may arguably be “keener” than), their “registered” contemporary, (or Approved Driving Instructor).
You can tell whether your driving instructor is a PDI or an ADI as a PDI will display a pink badge in the bottom left of the corner of the front windscreen, whereas an ADI will display a green badge.
Answer: To find out if a foreign licence can be exchanged for a British licence, click here: https://www.gov.uk/exchange-a-foreign-driving-licence
Answer: We have been on the ORDIT register since it opened, and it is very much in our interests to get you through the exams and working with us. So, genuinely, if you fail any of the exams 3 times despite your best efforts, any training costs incurred up to that point will be written off.
Cynics might even suggest that if you’ve already got the money available for your training, you could take advantage of A2Z’s training initiative, putting the money aside until you pass the exams, then “buying out” once fully qualified. Of course, we believe you’ll come to see how fair and effective A2Z’s instructor franchise is in the meantime and believe you’ll stay on anyway a long time after you’ve qualified, after all, you won’t be paying us a franchise fee for anything we haven’t earned for you, but that’s a risk we’re prepared to take.
Answer: We believe that we offer a fair deal for honest instructors who are genuinely intersted in working with a reputable driving school. As a trading driving school, we want to make our fees from the work we provide, and training an instructor in order to develop our core business makes perfect sense to us. We do not seek to profiteer from selling training courses, which after all, would simply be increasing our own competition! Our franchise fee is based on the level of work conducted, you don’t have to worry about being stuck with a fixed weekly franchise fee that you can’t afford, nor is this a ploy to get you to pay for training that then isn’t made available to you, or falls short of any reasonable quality.
Answer: Well, to put it bluntly, you’ll have to pay for the training course at the stage you’re on. In the same way as there would have been no refund if you’d paid cash for a training course elsewhere, we will be entitled to charge you for our part 2 course if you pull out after passing part 1, or for our full training course if you pull out after passing part 2.
Please don’t enter into the commitment of training with us as a driving instructor if you’re unsure whether this line of work is something that exactly appeals to you. This is a good opportunity to get the most from an industry that has been plagued in the past by false promises and shoddy training, but bear in mind that you will be asked to enter into a binding contract that you must be willing to see through to the end, otherwise you will lose the advantages that training and working as an A2Z of Motoring driving instructor will otherwise give you. Remember that you probably won’t owe us any more than others will charge you at the start of the course, but our offer is made because we are a trading driving school needing instructors to cover the work we expect to be able to generate, and our offer is a means to that end, not because we’re looking to take large sums of cash for training courses as a means to earning extra income for our school.
Answer: Well, yes, it’s really free. A2Z will give you all the training you need to stand a good chance at passing the 3 part qualifying exam, but there will still be some costs you would need to incur, and there are some conditions attached.
The most expensive element of what’s necessary to qualify as a driving instructor, the training itself, is provided by A2Z at no charge to you, but you will have to pay for:
– exam and licence fees
– travel costs and accommodation expenses to travel to Swansea for training.
And our free training is subject to certain conditions, which are mainly:
– you must diligently apply yourself to the training we provide and follow our instructions during the training process. For example, if you were to cancel training because you couldn’t afford to travel to Swansea to take the training, then the full training cost would become payable
– you must remain as a franchised instructor with A2Z for a minimum period after you qualify, during which you will pay our standard hourly franchise charge for services we continue to provide to you.
Answer: The great majority of our instructors own and operate their own car, but A2Z is able to provide a car on hire if required. However, there are many car hire companies that specialise in providing dual controlled cars to the driver training industry, and can offer a wide selection of makes and models as well as a variety of different terms. We recommend that you speak directly with us if you do not already have a tuition car of your own, and we’ll be happy to advise you as to whatever’s in your best interests.
Answer: After passing the part 2, trainee instructors are eligible to take out a training licence, which greatly enhances their chances of passing their final part 3 exam and enables them to start working as an instructor and establishing their business a lot sooner than would otherwise be possible. A2Z can offer this facility, provided the instructor agrees to abide by the strict conditions governing supervision and additional training.
Answer: If you want to get a full UK driving licence, (unless you are able to exchange an existing full EU licence under the EU’s reciprocal licensing arrangements), you will first have to have a UK provisional licence, then pass a theory and practical test to prove your basic competence to drive. Before you can start lessons, you will need to wait until you have received your provisional licence, which is in 2 parts, a card part and a paper part. You will also need both parts of your licence when you sit the theory and practical driving test, although you can start lessons before you apply for either the theory or practical test.
Answer: All prices quoted are per person and cover the cost of the instructor’s time, use of vehicle, fuel, insurance and VAT where appropriate. Lesson prices are normally quoted “per hour”, but there are introductory offers and prepayment discounts also available.
Answer: Yes. Our Refresher Course is of similar duration to our advanced course but, without having the pressure of a test to contend with, most “refreshers” will soon gain a newfound confidence and enthusiasm. If you have been unable to take to the roads for some time since you passed your basic driving test or have almost developed a phobia about certain aspects of the driving process, such as reverse parking or motorway driving, this course would be tailored to your particular needs and will specifically address your own shortcomings. Even if this only means being able to reverse into the parking bays at Tesco!
Answer: There are many forms of Advanced Driving courses available, and they all promote safe driving and will enhance your driving skills. The DIAmond Advanced Driving Test closely follows the familiar format of the DSA driving test, although drivers will obviously be expected to show a higher degree of competence including demonstrable skill in all the manoeuvres. The test will take over an hour, encompassing most types of road conditions, with a maximum of 6 minor faults being allowed and successful candidates will receive a detailed synopsis of their driving and exclusive and immediate acceptance to the prestigious DIAmond Advanced Motorists Master Driver Club. They also receive a handcrafted certificate and a bimonthly “Driving” magazine as well as various discounts and benefits. Our course includes five 2-hour lessons and the cost of the advanced test.
Answer: Our A2Z PassPlus course consists of six specially designed training sessions to follow on from a successful practical driving test. The lessons will include driving both in and out of town, on dual carriageways and motorways, in all weathers and at night. The extra experience and positive driving skills from Pass Plus would otherwise take a long time to acquire.
Answer: Pass Plus is backed by the Government, the Driving Standards Agency and many major UK insurers. It is designed to make newly qualified drivers become better drivers and gives a number of other benefits, such as additional experience gained in a controlled environment, such as motorway driving, and cheaper motor insurance. You can take Pass Plus at any time, although it would be more useful to new drivers up to a year after passing their practical driving test. There is no further test to take. When your instructor is satisfied with your performance you receive a certificate from the Driving Standards Agency which can be used to significantly reduce the insurance premium you or your parents pay for you to drive a car.
Answer: Yes. You must notify the DVLA immediately if any of the information on the licence changes e.g. if you change your name or address, or if you lose either the photocard or the paper counterpart licence. You could be fined up to £1,000 if you do not notify the DVLA of any changes.
Answer: Your provisional licence used to be in two parts but it is only the Photocard that remains, which shows your name, date and place of birth, the issuing authority and the date of expiry and Driving Licence number as well as the holder’s permanent UK address and the categories of vehicles for which the licence is valid.
Until June 2015 there also used to be a paper Driving Licence Counterpart that listed the details of any endorsements you might have and some other details about your licensing entitlement. However, the information previously contained in the paper counterpart is now available online and may be required to be printed out if you were to (say) hire a car or needed to provide information to the police or any other authority requiring that information.
More information at https://www.gov.uk/penalty-points-endorsements/overview
Answer: The paper part of the old 2 part driving licence licence document (introduced in 1998) was abolished in June 2015, so No, you now only need to take the photocard on your test to both the theory and the practical tests, (although full paper driving licenses held before 1998 are still valid).
However, if you’ve mislaid your photocard you’ll need to apply for a replacement before you take your test.
Answer: To supervise a learner driver you must be at least 21 years old and have a current full GB or EC/EEA motor car licence which must have been held for at least three years. Anyone who does not comply with these requirements could be liable to a maximum fine of £1,000, discretionary disqualification or 3-6 penalty points (as could the learner driver).
