Driving Lessons News Service

A learner driver from Oxfordshire has had his driving test cancelled after the examiner claimed that his VW Golf car was too dirty.

18 year-old Jack Hyde said, “The examiner told me he came to work in suit trousers and expected to sit on a tidy seat”.

Jack contined, “There were a few croissant crumbs on the seat and a dog biscuit in the footwell, but he wouldn’t even give me 5 minutes to clean it”.

The cancellation means the learner driver has lost his £62 driving test fee and now must wait 6 weeks for a retest.
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Mr Hyde has made a complaint to the Driving Standards Agency who said they would look into it.

A spokesperson for Driving School Lessons, the owners of this news site said, “I feel for Jack as the examiner’s reaction does seem a bit excessive”.

They continued, “I wish Jack all the best for his test in a few weeks time and would encourage all pupils and instructors to make sure their vehicles are thorougly clean and tidy on test day”.

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has called on the Department for Transport to change the Highway Code so that it includes guidance for learner drivers on how to handle their vehicle around lorries.

In addition, the FTA also wants learner drivers knowledge and understanding of how to behave around lorries to be included as part of the driving test.

Guidance on how to behave around cyclists, cars and motorcyclists are included in the Highway Code, however, there’s no section on lorries – which is quite alarming when you consider there were nearly 11,000 accidents involving lorries in 2007.

Commenting on this, the FTA’s Policy Director, James Hookham said, “As road users, whether we’re on two, four or even sixteen wheels, we all have a responsibility to act sensibly and within the law”.

“It’s unfair to make lorry drivers the scapegoat. Whenever there is an accident, or even a near miss, involving a lorry, the common assumption is that the lorry driver is at fault. But how many of us are aware of how much clearance we need to give HGVs when we are overtaking or how much distance do we need to keep to enable a lorry driver to see us?”

Hookham continued, “Three years ago, the Driving Standards Agency consulted on changes to the Highway Code, but ended up bottling it. We’re asking them now to rethink that decision and help make our roads safer”.

Steve Tattersall, a spokesperson for Driving School Lessons said, “We support the FTA on this important issue and think the Highway Code should include the necessary guidance on driving behaviour around lorries. We encourage the DSA to open up the consultation on changes to the Highway Code again”.

The FTA, the leading voice on freight transport in the UK also wants all haulage & freight companies to make sure their drivers’ training is up to date and comprehensive.

English actress Sienna Miller has been celebrating after successfully passing her UK driving test.

The 27 year-old BAFTA nominated actress, best known for her roles in Alfie, Factory Girl and The Edge Of Love had already passed a European driving test over 5 months ago.

Miller took her driving test in the West end of London and was reported to have hugged the examiner on hearing that she had passed. She also leapt out of the car and gave a big hug to her instructor.

A source for the Mirror.co.uk said “Sienna had been so nervous before. She’s an accomplished driver but was desperate to be able to drive here”.

The source continued, “When the examiner told her she’d passed she hugged him and leapt out of the car to bear-hug her instructor. She is thrilled to pieces to be on the road”.

Stuart Vaughan of Driving School Lessons, said, “Congratulations to Sienna on passing her driving test. We wish her all the best in her driving and acting career and should she wish to take any Pass Plus driving lessons in Southampton, rather than London we’d be happy to offer them”.

Driving School Lessons is offering new Portsmouth pupils 5 driving lessons in Portsmouth for £55.

The introductory offer, known as ‘5 For £55′, applies to the pupils first 5 hours of driving lessons, after which the rate reverts back to the standard £20 per 1 hour lesson.

To qualify for the offer, pupils must pay the £55 on their first lesson and agree to take at least 15 hours of driving lessons with the driving school.

Steve Tattersall of Driving School Lessons, said, “This is a fantastic new offer for those people looking to learn to drive in the Portsmouth area and provides a saving of £45 on our usual prices”.

Steve continued, “Pupils can book their ‘5 For £55′ by calling us for free on 0800 612 8983″.

The 5 for £55 driving lessons in Portsmouth offer is scheduled to end on the 15th July 2009, though this may be extended if the offer proves successful.

Driving School Lessons is one of the South coasts fastest growing driving schools. In addition to qualified tuition, the company also offers a specialist driving instructor franchise scheme that supplies new and experienced instructors with new pupils and business support.

A 24-year old woman learner driver from Norwich has become one of the rare few people who have passed their driving test with no driving faults at all.

Learner drivers can make up to 15 faults during their practical driving test and still pass, with the average number of faults made by drivers being 9.

Commenting on her achievement, Kim Murton said, “I was always quite scared about driving and it took me years to pluck up the courage to have a lesson. It took me a long while to pick up even the basics”.

Kim continued, “I was shaking and nervous but I just knew I had to get through it. I am shocked but so pleased that I passed with no faults. I was told that was very rare and it is unbelievable how far I came really.”

Kim took her driving lessons over a nine month period with Stephen Lelievre, a driving instructor with 33 years experience, who runs the Popular Driving School in Thorpe Marriott.

Stephen said, “I talked to other driving instructors when this happened and they all said they had hardly ever heard of this happening before”.

Stephen continued, “I know people have come close but no errors at all is amazing. I am really proud of Kim because she was so nervous at first. She has come such a long way”.

Trevor Wedge, Great Britain’s Chief Driving Examiner at the DSA, said: “We congratulate Kim Murton on her result and wish her all the best for her driving career”.

Stuart Vaughan of Driving School Lessons, the driving school franchise specialist that helps instructors source new pupils, said, “This is a magnificent achievement. We pass on our congratulations to both Kim and Stephen”.

The practical part of the UK driving test is failed by 40% of people at least once.

World number 3 and British tennis star Andy Murray has said he will start taking driving lessons once the Wimbledon tournament is over.

According to the Telegraph.co.uk, Murray made a pledge in 2008 to win this year’s Wimbledon and also to pass his driving test.

However, the Wimbledon semi-finalist has yet to commence driving lessons, with the star saying “I’ve been very busy this year and it is a relatively stressful thing to do at the end of a long training day – take driving lessons – especially with the traffic and stuff in London”.

Stuart Vaughan of Driving School Lessons, said, “We wish Andy all the very best for tomorrow’s Wimbledon semi-final and should he wish to take his driving lessons in Southampton we’d be happy to help”.

The DSA (Driving Standards Agency) and The Caravan Club have urged those motorists returning to caravanning this summer to take a caravan or motorhome training course.

Figures released by the Caravan Club show bookings are up 40% this year as recession hit Brits return to caravanning for their summer holiday as opposed to more expensive breaks.

The DSA’s Chief Driving Examiner, Trevor Wedge, said “Anyone who has not towed a caravan for a number of years should make sure they are familiar with any changes that may have taken place before they get in the driver’s seat. Handling, manoeuvring and vision is different for a driver when towing”.

Both caravan and motorhome training courses are being offered by the Caravan Club to new members and those existing members returning to caravanning.

The DSA and the Caravan Club are also advising those motorists returning to caravanning to check the list below:

1. If a driver passed their test before 1997, they will be allowed to drive any car, and tow any caravan (weighing up to a combined maximum allowable mass of 8250kg).

But for drivers who passed their test after January 1997 there are additional restrictions and they may need to take a further driving test in order to tow the largest car/caravan outfits.

2. Caravans have tended to become heavier over the years. Drivers must make sure their car and caravan are an appropriate match or their combination could be unsafe or even illegal.

3. Drivers must make sure they are familiar with new technology features, such as stability control systems.

4. Drivers must check their car and caravan electrical connector and find an adaptor if the connectors are not the same at each end.

Those readers interested in taking the Caravan Club towing training course can find out more here.

The Road-S-Kill project has been launched for learner drivers in East Yorkshire by the Humberside Fire and Rescue Service, Safer Roads Humber and local driving schools.

The project aims to reduce injury and death on the regions roads by giving learner drivers about to take their driving test a series of hard hitting presentations and videos on the dangers they face when on the road.

Subjects include the dangers of driving with loud music on, drink driving, not wearing a seatbelt and speeding.

Steve Harrison, road safety officer for the fire service and founder of the Roads-S-Kill project said, “This is potentially the biggest thing the fire service can do to improve road safety in the region”.

Steve continued, “There are up to 300 new drivers on the roads in the area at any one time, so if we can get the message through to some of them, then that would be a massive achievement”.

The first presentation was delivered to a group of learner drivers from the Hull-based Elite Driving School.

The session also included interviews with relatives of youngsters who had been killed in road collisions.

Learner driver Aidan Wilby, 17, said: “I thought the presentation was really useful. It made me more aware of the effects playing loud music can have on your driving and I’ll definitely be more careful”.

Hairdresser Rayah Knight, 19, of Hessle, said: “It definitely made me think about some things I hadn’t considered before and I’ll make sure I always put a seatbelt on whenever I’m in a car”.

The RAC Foundation has also backed the campaign.

Year four pupils at Milford Junior School in Yeovil have received hands on driving lessons as part of a road safety morning conducted by PCSO Catherine Heylar of Avon and Somerset police.

The morning session involved pupils driving a battery powered car around an off-road circuit in order to get an understanding of the road from a drivers perspective.

There were also talks on crossing the road and the importance of booster seats.

Commenting on the event, PCSO Catherine Heylar said: “This was a really good event and the children were really enthusiastic. They asked lots of questions and took a real interest in what we were telling them. I think they enjoyed the driving part most as it is good fun and they forget they are learning at the same time”.

Catherine continued, “It is important to introduce road safety at an early age and to build on that as children grow up. I am pleased that we are able to offer this experience to children in Yeovil and I am confident that it will help local children to stay safe on and near the roads”.

The battery powered cars were provided by Jumicar, a scheme that provides fun and educational driving activities for children.

A new survey from the AA has found that many of its instructors think the US President Barack Obama would make one of the best driving instructors.

Obama’s strong leadership skills were one of the key qualities admired by the AA’s instructors.

TV presenter Fern Britton and actors Sir Roger Moore and Stephen Fry were also thought to have the right blend of skills and personality to give driving lessons to pupils.

Stuart Vaughan, an independent driving instructor providing driving lessons in Portsmouth, amongst other South coast areas, agreed, saying, “Obama would make a perfect driving instructor, he has natural confidence and calmness, together with strong leadership and direction.”