Before booking a driving lesson with a driving instructor, you should check the instructor is fully qualified and holds a valid DSA certification (often displayed in their car).
You should also ensure you are getting value for money and that when you pay for a lesson, you are given a full lesson of one-to-one tuition and not ‘sharing’ the hour with another learner.
Before signing up for several lessons, you should request a trial lesson which gives you a chance to ensure you are comforable with the car, instructor and their teaching methods.
What to look for when booking a driving lesson
1. Does the instructor have a website with testimonials?
2. When speaking to them on the phone, do they sound approachable, friendly and helpful?
3. Are they a Approved Driving Instructors (ADI) or Potential Driving Instructors (PDI) and what is their grade?
The Driving Standards Agency regularly check the standards of tuition given by all driving instructors and will assign them a grade. This grade is retained until their next check and a very good indication of the instructors actual standard.
A driving instructor is 1 to 6 (6 being the highest grade possible).
As of February 2009 the total number of driving instructors in the UK broken down by grade is as follows:
Grade 1 – 0%
Grade 2 – 0.09%
Grade 3 – 0.76%
Grade 4 – 51.32%
Grade 5 – 31.03%
Grade 6 – 5.99%
Ungraded – 10.81% (newly qualified instructors are officially ungraded until their first DSA “check test” is done)
NOTE: Any driving instructor whose grade is less than a 4 is subject to further checks by the DSA and if the standard of their tuition fails to improve within a very short period of time, they risk having their driving instructor licence withdrawn.
Driving instructors must pass a difficult three-part examination to fully qualify as an Approved Driving Instructor (ADI), and they have to maintain the high standards required by the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) by passing periodic tests.
Fully qualified instructors are called Approved Driving Instructors (ADI’s)
Trainee driving instructors are called Potential Driving Instructors (PDI’s)
NOTE: A DSA grading should not be the sole indicator of the effectiveness of an instructor. The grade is determined by viewing an instructor for just a 1 hour period and may not be a true reflection of their abilities.
4. Does the instructor follow the voluntary DSA Code of Practice For Approved Driving Instructors.
5. Is the driving instructor a member of any professional organisations such as the Driving Instructors Association (DIA), the Motor Schools Association (MSA), the ADI Federation etc.
6. Is there a valid license displayed in the instructors car?
Driving Lesson Complaints
You can check if someone offering driving tuition is registered at the ADI branch of the Driving Standards Agency:
Email: ADIReg@dsa.gsi.gov.uk
Phone: 0115 901 2618
You can report anyone you suspect of being an illegal driving instructor by contacting the Driving Standards Agency:
Phone: 02920 581155
Email: integrity.team@dsa.gsi.gov.uk
