Learner drivers

Attitude

Your attitude to driving and to other road users can affect the way you drive and how enjoyable you find driving. It’s easy to become anxious or frustrated, especially if there’s a lot of traffic or you’re on unfamiliar roads. When you’re learning to drive it can feel like the whole world is in a rush and you might be holding them up.

If you’re a learner, try to remember that experienced drivers were once learners too. Although you’re bound to see some poor behaviour on the road, most people want to get to their destination with the minimum of fuss. Most drivers are courteous to other drivers and road users, and forgive their mistakes. And everyone makes mistakes – even experienced drivers.

Learner drivers have the opportunity to begin their driving careers with a safe and responsible attitude. It’s important at this very early stage to start developing the behaviours that will keep everyone safe on the road and make driving an enjoyable experience.

If you’re a novice, you need to be responsible and show patience and courtesy to become a good driver. And, hopefully, more experienced drivers will show you the same respect.

Planned lessons

A planned approach to learning is advisable, particularly in the early stages. Everyone learns differently, so it’s important that, together with whoever teaches you to drive, you develop a learning plan that suits your needs.

Who should teach you?

The best way to learn is by having

• regular planned lessons with a professional instructor
• each lesson matched to your needs and abilities
• as much practice as possible.

Once you understand the basics, it’s a good idea to combine professional instruction with as much practice as you can get with relatives or friends. This helps you to gain experience by driving in a wide variety of situations.

If you pay someone for driving lessons, they must be an approved driving instructor (ADI) or a potential driving instructor (PDI) with a trainee licence.

Approved driving instructor (car)

An ADI must

• pass a three-part examination to qualify
• have their name entered on the register
• held by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA)
• display a green ADI identification certificate on the windscreen of the vehicle being used for a driving lesson
• reach and maintain the standards required by DVSA.

Some trainee instructors who haven’t yet completed the qualifying examination may hold a trainee licence to help them gain instructional experience.

Trainee instructors must display a pink identification certificate on the windscreen of the vehicle being used for a driving lesson.

How to choose an ADI

You should choose an instructor who can provide exactly what you need as a learner. Some ADIs will also be able to help you develop your skills after passing the test – for example, by teaching you how to drive at different times of day, in different weather conditions and on types of road you may not have experienced while you were learning to drive.

Choose an instructor

• who has a good reputation
• who’s reliable and punctual
• whose vehicle suits you (eg engine size, has dual controls, etc)
• who you think you’ll get on well with.

You should ask if the instructor is an ADI or a trainee. ADIs are graded on their performance and you can ask what grade they are. Visit www.gov.uk for more information on ADI grading.

You can find your nearest ADIs by using the ‘Find driving schools and lessons’ tool on www.gov.uk. Put in your postcode and it’ll come up with a list of ADIs in your area. You can also find out which ADIs are voluntarily developing their own skills (continuing professional development – CPD) or observing the voluntary ADI code of practice.

Trainee instructors aren’t listed on this website.

You could also ask friends and relatives to recommend an ADI.

Take advice from your ADI on

• all aspects of driving
• what learning materials are available; for example, books, DVD-ROMs, downloads, eBooks and apps
• how to practise
• when you’ll be ready for the driving test.

The official syllabus

If you learn with an ADI, make sure they cover the official syllabus fully. See The Official DVSA Guide to Learning to Drive for more details. The syllabus is also shown in the Driver’s Record. The Driver’s Record will help you to monitor your progress and is available from your ADI or can be downloaded from www.gov.uk

All practical driving tests include a period of independent driving. This assesses your ability to drive on your own while making decisions for yourself without instruction. The examiner will be looking for evidence that you have the required skills, knowledge and attitude to be a safe driver.

This is important because you’ll be able to drive unaccompanied as soon as you’ve passed your driving test. During the independent drive you’ll be asked to

• drive following traffic signs to a destination, or
• drive following a series of verbal directions or a combination of both.

Accompanying a learner

If you’re accompanying a learner, you should try to encourage confidence. It’s also important not to put them in a situation that requires more skill than they can be expected to show.

Don’t let them try to run before they can walk. Overestimating a learner’s skill can set back their progress and could lead to incidents for both the learner and other road users.

Anyone supervising a learner must

• be at least 21 years old
• have held for at least three years (and still hold) a full EC/EEA licence for the category of vehicle being driven.

The Official DVSA Guide to Learning to Drive includes a section that will help you to understand what a learner driver needs to practise. It also points out the hazards you may encounter when accompanying a learner driver.

Learning by example

People often learn by example. You, as the accompanying driver, should therefore

• show a learner how to drive with quiet confidence
• point out when other drivers make a mistake and discuss with the learner how they could approach the situation better
• discourage them from developing bad habits and using excuses such as ‘Everyone else does it, so why shouldn’t I?’

Taking on too much

The enthusiastic learner should be careful not to take on too much. Overconfidence can lead to carelessness, risk-taking and incidents. Also, as the accompanying driver, you should understand the learner’s level of experience and skill as a driver. You can take advice from the learner’s ADI about the level they’ve reached and the skills they should be practising.

The training vehicle

A vehicle being driven by a learner must display L plates (or D plates in Wales), which should be removed or covered at all other times.

If you own a car or intend to buy one, it might be best to find a driving school that uses a similar model.

At a later stage, it might also be possible to have lessons in your own car.

Avoid fixing L plates (D plates) to the windscreen or back window, as they can restrict your view.