When you’re ready to take the plunge and dive right into driving lessons, you’ll want to give yourself the best possible chance of success by choosing the ideal instructor for you. This can prove a bit of a daunting task. Who do you ask? What to look for? Do you judge by pass rate, teaching style or simply the car they use?
Picking the right person can make the difference between a pass or a fail and how much the whole process ends up costing you. Here are some tips to help you make this tough decision:
- Understand what’s available in your area
Don’t always rely on the first search results that Google throws up for you. Or the phone book for that matter. Some of the best local driving instructors are often found through word of mouth and it would be a real shame to miss out on meeting a great instructor just because their website doesn’t rank highly on search results. Asking for recommendations in your local area on Facebook can be a good way to find names you might not have heard of. Click here for a Driving instructor Market Harborough.
- Compare prices
Contact as many local instructors as possible and then compare what they charge. The average price for an hour-long lesson is approximately £25 but you can benefit from some discounts if you book a block of lessons in advance. Don’t always choose the cheapest as you should question why they are undercutting every other instructor.
- Testimonials
Find out what previous and current students think about their lessons and Driving instructor Market Harborough. You should also feel comfortable asking the instructor about how long they’ve been teaching, what their current pass rate is and what is their Driving Standards Agency rating. Every two years, instructors are examined by the agency and graded on their teaching ability. The grading goes from Ungraded to a Grade 6.
- What about qualifications?
Every qualified instructors must be registered with the DVSA and a fully qualified instructor will show a green badge in the vehicle window. A trainee instructor will have a pink badge. Don’t be afraid to ask about their level of qualification. Don’t automatically dismiss a trainee instructor. They are often fresh, full of current knowledge and will charge less than a fully qualified instructor. Try a taster lesson and see how it goes.
- Is the car the right match?
Ideally, you’ll want to learn in a similar vehicle to that which you intend to drive after you’ve passed your test. Do you want automatic? Do you want to learn in a 4×4? Don’t be tempted by a flash luxury car which could be a million miles from what your typical first car is likely to be. Find out from the instructor what car they use, what the engine size is, are dual controls present and fuel type etc.
- Personality
After you’ve found out all the above points, the final decision will come down to personality. You’ll be spending a lot time together in close proximity, so it’s important you feel comfortable.