Red driving school in Administration!

Update Feb 17th 2010: It does look like the rumours are finally true!



The only info I can find is the following - LVG ltd in Administration 16th Feb, even MCR don't seem to have released a public press release yet though they have listed LVG ltd on their businesses for sale page. I guess the full details will come to light as the days/weeks progress.

For some reason there are a few people out there that think red driving school or its parent company LVG ltd has gone into administration or is having financial difficulties and is bound to fail soon.

Why these rumours are flying about, I have no idea, but probably suspect that there are those who have taken up the instructor training course with red driving school without doing proper research or properly read the contracts are now dissatisfied and now hope that LVG ltd now suffers because the company made some money out of them.

All I know is that at the moment, the company is in good financial standing, and red driving school is in no danger of going bust very soon, so all you franchisees can relax.

Driving Instructors are stupid!

Many learner drivers or their families seem to think that driving instructors are stupid, not inteligent and can't do any other job which is why they are stuck with giving tuition to provisional licence holders.



Over the years, I seen many comments online about ADI's or just from the way instructors are addressed, I mentioned in the past about the swearing pupil who thought that paying me money earnt them the right to do whatever they liked in my car.

Yesterday I got an email via my driving school website from learner driver which went something like this:
"I am interested in taking 25 driving lessons with you, but I have a question about the Borehamwood test centre, what distance do they test your eyesight from, and do they use a particular number plate?"

Now did the sender of this email think that I would only answer the question if they promised me something in return, because I was desperate for more learner drivers? I did send a reply back with the information required, but this is just an example of how naive some people think ADI's are!

3 Day Driver Coaching Course

I understand that some of you ADI's may not have been clear about the cost of
the UEL (University of London) Driver Coaching Course for driving school instructors advertised in our recent e-mail.

So, to clarify, the cost of this 3 day driver training course is normally £325.00
(three hundred and twenty-five pounds) but is being offered for just
£125.00 (One hundred and twenty-five pounds) if you take part in the
study.



A copy of the original e-mail has been posted on the ADI Forum (CPD Section). If you want the details resending to you then make contact via the forum.

The response from driving instructors to date has been very positive, so if you are still considering if this is the course for you to gain the relevant CPD credits, then please do get in contact.

The University will be issuing a CPD certificate at the end of the course to all ADIs that attend.

If you are interested, then visit the ADI forum posted above.

ADI Driving School Insurance

I was talking to some driving school instructors recently about the recent snow closures and loss of earnings for our industry, when an important point was raised.



Not all ADI teaching insurance will cover an instructor while giving learner drivers tuition in adverse weather conditions like the one we experienced earlier in January 2010, and each instructor needs to check the small print of the cerificate policy to see if there are any exemptions in this or other circumstances.

According to one of my colleagues, an ADI learnt the hard way when involved in a driving lesson accident in snow, failing to stop at a giveway due to ice on the road, that all vehicle repairs will have to be covered out of his own pocket.

While we hope that the artic weather conditions are over, it is better you check your ADI tuition insurance policy, are call the broker up to ensure you do not violate your terms and conditions and at the same time commit a criminal offence.

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Driving Lessons back to Normal

I am happy to say that I have been able to resume normal driving school lessons from Saturday January 16th 2010 after the recent snow chaos that closed many UK driving schools.



I have also seen an increase in the number of incoming phone enquires generated from my school website since the improvement in the weather and road conditions and my diary is now back to normal work load wise (nobody cals to arrange driving lessons when they can't get to work or are forced to take unplanned holidays because the pubic transportation system is not operational due to adverse weather like snow or iced up roads).

The DSA has also been able to conduct driving tests as well, though it is going to take months to clear the backlog caused by the recent december 2009/January 2010 cancellations.

Learner driver pupils have also been hit financially as they would need some more lessons to keep their skills current till their next appointment letters drop through their post boxes.

Driving Instructor extra income

With the credit crunch hitting hard, many driving instructors will be wondering of ways to make extra income to suppliment the loss of earnings due to the reduction in the number of people taking driving lessons.



There are 2 avenues that you can look at when thinking of ways of earning extra income as a driving instructor.

1. Working from home schemes. You can look at some of the various work from home schemes that are available, most of which are performance based and allow you to work as many or few hours as required. Things like conducting telephone surveys, stuffing envelopes and posting, telesales. The only thing about most of these jobs are first they go very quickly and secondly they are not high paying and can require a fair amount of your time.

2. See if you can make more money from your learner driver pupils by selling them products that they might always use but buy somewhere else. An example of this would be an Avon representative selling cosmetic products to her clients. This is only one example, if you can think of a product that is used on a regular basis, and can find a wholesaler willing to give you a good discount, then you can offer it to your students at a price that is cheaper than where they currently buy it, then you are bound to not only gain them as customers, but they might also source these products for friends and family.

It is not going to be easy to making extra income as a driving instructor, but if you do a bit of research, think hard about the options available to you, you might find a home based job or locate a product to sell to your students, friends and other family members. Don't forget that learning another language could open up the driving school market to you and bring in additional learner drivers.

Driving Lessons after snow

I was finally able to give some driving lessons to some learner drivers today after the recent snow and very cold adverse weather that has been sweeping across the UK.



Being a saturday, the main roads were not too busy when I started but clear of snow or black ice, but the side road were very slippery. Luckly the first learner driver pupil of the day lived on a main road, was at a very good standard, and while I knew we would not be able to practice any driving test maneuvers, I had a lot planned including making progress on dual carriageways (including 70mph ones), anticipation and planning, dealing with hazards on high streets, country roads.

I did take my student on some of the side roads just to demonstrate the dangers of driving on ice, need for caution when emerging from the side road (loss of traction meaning don't try and use a small gap in traffic as you might not make it safely if your wheels spin, which ours did).

In total, I suffered 3 days loss of instructor income some of which I will not be able to get back due to the test candidate's theory test certificate expiring.

I've got another learner driver pupil with a test scheduled for Wednesday 13th January 2010, and if the weather forecasts are to be believed, then this is most likely to be cancelled either because of snow or adverse icy roads.

Driving tests 9th Jan 2010 cancelled

The driving standards agency (DSA) has cancelled all practical car tests scheduled for Saturday 9th January 2010 due to snow across the whole of the UK.

All test candidates have been advised to go online and re-book their tests for another day free of charge. The DSA does not pay compensation for driving tests cancelled due to snow or adverse weather conditions.



I'm not sure of how the DSA will treat those whose theory test pass certificates will expire or has expired and they were not able to take their pratical car assessment due to the snow.

We are all hoping that the weather will hold off over the weekend and that tests will resume on Monday 11th jan 2010, not only do instructors want to reduce loss of income, but many learner drivers just want to get their full british licences.

Driving Lessons in a BMW mini

I'm always fascinated by the various requests made during enquiries about driving lessons from learner drivers who want to prepare for the UK practical car test, and this week for some reason I've had about 3 or 4 people calling up asking if I offer manual driving lessons in a mini.



Now don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with wanting to learn to drive in a Mini Cooper, but I just wonder is it more important to impress your mates during conversations on the type of car you drive than it is getting the right driving instructor to teach you the essential DSA skills to not only pass the practical test, but that will keep you safe once you've got that full British licence.

Even if you intend to buy a Mini once you've passed, you don't need to learn to drive in one, in anycase who you choose to learn with is absolutely your choice and in what car, just don't expect an instructor to offer lessons in London at £17 per hour in a BMW mini like one of my recent callers asked.

If I had my way and could afford it, I would like to give driving lessons in a Mercedes like the one below.

Driving instructor injured during lesson in snow

For those of you students looking for driving lessons in snow, the following story will explain why most instructors do not offer them here in the UK as it is not safe, wise and would be too costly for them.



The story is about a driving instructor that had to be cut from his car by emegency services after his student drove into s snow plough during a driving lesson being conducted in snowy conditions.
Today is the second day that my driving school has remain closed by the snow, including missing a January 7th 2010 driving test which was cancelled and the student's theory test pass certificate expires soon. I have no idea if I will be able to take any learner drivers out tomorrow.

Read the full story about learning to drive in a snow and having an accident that injured the instructor

Loss of instructor earnings snow

Today I had to cancel all my driving lessons due to snow which for me as an instructor means a loss of earnings which I can't make up for because I might not be able to reschedule all of them for this week.

So is there anything you can do as a driving school owner to minimise loss of income if you have to cancel lessons due to bad weather such as heavy snow or black ice on the road? The true simple answer is NO. If you can't go out driving because it is not safe on the roads, there is not going to be anything work wise that you'll be able to do.



The only other source of income would be something homebased, that might either require the use of the telephone (eg telesales, product or service surveys) or computer based (data entry, typing, etc).

Apart from writing this driving school blog post, I have been stuck at home with my children watching TV mainly the news about the disruption cause by the snow and artic weather and entertaining them.

Hopefully I won't have to cancel tomorrow's lessons, as for the DSA and tests, you will have to contact your local test centre directly.

Smarter than driving Instructor

As a driving school instructor not only do I possess many years of experience on the road, but I've taught hundreds of provisional licence holders how to drive and prepare for the UK practical driving test and thus I've seen all of the tricks in the trade, and thus I'm not surprised when some of these learner drivers think that they are smarter than their driving instructor.



When it comes to passing the DSA practical driving test, knowing what the examiner is expecting during the 40 minutes of the test, or determining if a provisional licence holder is ready or not, you will never be smarter than a department of transport approved driving instructor, and I strongly suggest to listen to any advice you are given by an ADI.

Fears of being ripped off

I know many learner drivers have fears of being ripped off by a driving instructor, and there are many cases where learners have been taken for a ride by those teaching them to drive, but you can reduce the chances of that happening by using the learner drivers record available on the DSA website to track your progress, remembering that each lesson should have been used to learn or practice a skill mentioned in the booklet.
If you feel your time is being wasted going over skills you have reached a skill level of 4 or more and nothing new is being introduced, have a word with your instructor, if there is no change, look for someone else.

Being smart means knowing your individual ability, working on your weaknesses with your driving instructors help and being consistent in your training.
I have seen a lot of provisional licence holders who I've trained to a level where I say okay let's book a driving test, because if you keep making the progress you are currently doing, you will be ready in 6 weeks, they get a date booked and once they get the DSA appointment letter in the post, start to slack off with their lessons, thinking they can still pass!
Many people want to save money, and therefore cut back on having professional tuition, but don't even have any private practice either, so how are they going to realistically keep up those skills that have been learnt.

If you really have money problems be honest with your instructor, I have given discounts to regular consistent clients who have had driving tests booked to help them keep thier driving skills current.

Don't try and kid yourself about being smarter than a driving instructor by hidding weaknesses, as you will only go and fail the dsa test, and have to spend more money not only for lessons, but booking another driving test.

I need more learner drivers

If as a driving instructor you really need more learner drivers to fill up your diary and help you to continue to earn a living, I fully understand especially after the recent return of the value added tax (VAT) to 17.5%. Apart from increased petrol costs which I've already mentioned, I had a direct debit for my driving school car leasing fee go through today, and it has increased by quite a few pounds over last month's!

So where or how do you get more learner drivers to come to you, and it doesn't matter if you hold a franchise with a national, local driving school or an independent operation, if you want more provisional licence holders to train to pass the DSA driving test and get a full British licence, the following advice should be of use.



1. Work longer hours! I don't work on sundays for personal and family reasons, only work till about 1pm on saturdays and finish during the week by 7pm (I do work late one evening though). If I needed more pupils as an instructor, I could easily add a few more by working longer hours, and most of the people I will be taking on will be employed people who can't take lessons during the day or early evening so are likely to be regulars who will also be willing to pay a decent fee for high quality tuition.

2. Go and find the learner drivers! You might think this is hard, but it is easier than you think. Most people learning to drive or preparing for the practical driving test will visit online forums to get tips or ask for help. Find one or two of these driver forums, register, create an account and spend about 45 minutes to 1 hour helping answer any queries regarding the driving test, learning to drive or performing manuovers. Make sure the forum alllows you to have a signature appended to your answers, this should contain your name, driving school name, phone number, and if allowed a link to your website. If you consistently do this for 6 months, you will surprised by the number of students you might get. Don't expect results if you don't post every day or only do it for a month, it takes time to build a reputation. I used this method to build my own business when I started and I can tell you it worked, but obviously took time, don't expect instant results.

3. Get yourself a driving school website. In this day and age, any business that doesn't have a website is losing out, in fact 90% of my current learner drivers come to me via my very informative online website, the rest via referals, etc.
If you use the advice given in step 2 above, and can also include a link to your website, then you might see results earlier than just using the first 2 only.

Remember your school website should offer something unique to the visitor, so use your local knowledge to great advantage and provide vaulable tips to all DSA test candidates. Promote your website via email, business cards, facebook, myspace and tell your current learner drivers to point their friends to your website even if they already have an instructor or don't live in your area of operation.

There are other ways to promote your business and get more learner drivers, and I hope that you are willing to put in the work and effort that is needed to succeed.

New Year driving resolutions 2010

2010 has finally arrived, and it's that time of the year when driving instructors will see an influx of new learner drivers who want to follow their new year's resolution of getting their full UK licence before the year runs out.

As always, with a new year, people are motivated to act on their dreams, and taking driving lessons to fulfill a goal of passing the UK practical test is a step in the right direction, but you need to make sure you are not one of those who by Febuary or March 2010 have allowed hurdles or a lack of interest to cause those dreams to fall by the wayside.



Write you goal down on paper, and post it on your fridge door, computer screen wardrobe mirror so you have a constant reminder of why you are taking lessons with a driving school.

Set aside a budget to make your dream come through (many of you spend a lot of money on alcohol, cigarettes and entertainment that could be used in gaining a life skill like a full British licence), and stick to it, if necessary give up that luxury dress, new mobile phone or Apple Touch, these will always get old and need replacement, but once you've passed the driving test, it's done, and you can pamper yourself.

Stay with it through the hard times and learning plateaus. Not everyone will find learning to drive a car plain sailing, but if you endure the hardships and don't allow costs or a couple of failurs to stand in the way, then this year could be your year.

Happy new year 2010, and hope by the time december comes, you would have that pink licence in your pocket. Don't forget the DSA are introducing new measures to the practical test in october that will make it even harder to pass, so aim to get it done before then.

Increased Driving School costs

Today 1st January 2010 sees an increase in driving school operating costs due to the return of VAT here in the UK back to 17.5%.



For the driving instructor or school business owner, this means an increase in the cost of Petrol, adi car leasing, marketing and advertising, vehicle servicing and repairs.

The unfortunate thing for most ADIs is that they will not be able to pass the cost onto their clients like most other businesses through driving lessons price increases as the current credit crunch economic climate will just force them to go somewhere else even if they are going to get a worse tuition service.

I would like to wish all driving instructors a happy new year, hoping that you will continue to keep your businesses aflot in these trying conditions, and have enough learner drivers to keep your diaries busy.