Parents can help reduce the cost of learning to drive

According to the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) learner drivers take on average 45 hours of professional tuition and 22 hours of private practice. With the rising cost of living and tuition fees at universities, it makes sense for parents to help out with the cost of driving lessons with private practice. Dave Foster, Director of driver training and education say’s “good Driving Instructors will welcome the support of parents and will work with them to reduce to cost of driving and help ensure that the learners become safer and better drivers.” Parents or other supervising drivers need to be aware of a few simple but essential rules in order not to fall foul of the law.

Rules for supervisors

By law, a supervising driver must:

be at least 21 years old
hold a full EC/EEA licence for that type of vehicle (including manual or automatic)
have held their licence for at least three years
ensure there is insurance covering the learner in the car being driven
clearly display 'L' plates on the back and front of the car

Supervising drivers are breaking the law if they:

are over the drink-drive limit
speak (handheld) on their mobile or text
fall asleep
fail to wear glasses, if they need these when driving themselves

Driving Instructors will be following a syllabus hat is set by the DSA and will have a progress record card and every pupil should have a copy. Ask the instructor what they feel the pupil needs n the way of practice. This way working together you will reduce the overall number of lessons needed and increase the chance of a first time pass.

Common pit falls seen by supervising drivers are;