Becoming a driving instructor

[George71]

I'm thinking of becoming a driving instructor and had a one to one meeting with the Instructor College through Red driving School.  The meeting with very professional but after investigating further I have found out that Let's Drive which was owned by the Instructor College went into administration and clients lost their money and therefore were unable to train.

Of course I am just a bit worried that the same could happen if it is really the same company but trading under a different name.

Can you take Part 1 and Part 2 on your own and recruit an instructor direct to take part 3? 

Just worried that the course fee is quite high and have read of forums that it takes a long time to train for part 3 as there are few trainers compared to locations that they have to cover?

How long do you realistically think (considering you pass all three first time)that it will take to be fully qualified?

Sorry for so many questions, but just confused!!!

[Angel]

Hello George, I was training with Lets Drive when they went into administration the day before my first Part 3 lesson. They owe me a very nasty hangover as I thought I had been hung out to dry but in fact they were taken over by Red and my training continued with an excellent trainer. I dont think anyone lost their money unless they decided not to continue. While the admin and getting lessons booked was problematic (I had more than one irrate conversation with the girlies on the diary phone) I got there in the end! I'm not sure if they are the best one to go with, prob not, and dont believe the hype the guy tells you about how much you can earn and a job at the end of it...its not as easy as that! To earn 30 k you have to do 40hrs+ which means a lot more than 8 hrs on the road a day with travelling between pupils etc.

You can do Part 1 on your own but would need help with Part 2 so ring round a few ADIs who are ORDIT trained in your area-search on here to start with. Look around for either independent trainers or schools and check the small print with regard to lesson prices, if they do the pink licence route and how much they charge for cars etc. Some schools will include all your books or you can buy them second hand on amazon or ebay. Also check out how many ADI's are in your area, do you see a lot driving around? if so there may not be much of a market left.

The training for Part 3 is a minimum of 40 hrs then you can get a pink licence and work and either have lessons monitored or get extra training. This is not always well regulated and more than one member has found that they have run out of time and have been too busy working to pay the franchise to actually take their test.

I'm sure others will put in their two pen'orth so take what info helps you to make your decision.

Good luck.

J

[keefidee]

I originally trained with TIC and found no issues with the financing. However if I had my time again I would go PAYG and use a top notch local trainer.
Yes, you can do part 1 on your own. trainer can help with part 2 and tailor part 3 to suit your needs.
Why not make it known where you are based and see if anyone on this forum can help you?

Good luck.

Keith

[George71]

Thanks Angel and Keefidee great help.

Did you work for Red driving school after you qualified or did you go it alone?


Keith do you work with a leading driving school or on your own?  In your opinion do you think there is enough work around?  My worry is too many driving instructors to clients or is it true about there being a storage?

The driving colleges say that you have a guraranted placement with them after qualifying - Is that true? if not is it quite easy to get work through major driving schools, AA, BSM etc.  Are franchises very expensive?

Just not sure what to believe.  I am realistic to think that you might be able to earn £30k after you have built up a client base with recommendations after a couple of years not before.  I reckon at the beginning you could be earning between £10k to £15k but of course if using a franchise paying out a lot too.

Thanks once again for your help.

[Angel]

I went indie straight away but only part time at first, although my buddy was full time from the off and is now very busy. I didn't see the point of paying someone else most of my money but it depends how you want to do things. I bought a car on 0% finance, got reasonable insurance as had max NCB but on the down side I spent quite a lot on ads in YP, Yell.com and a website which may have been paid for with a franchise. Most go with a franchise to start with and this is what I planned to do but changd my mind once I had passed. Check out the fees, BSM is expensive, AA slightly less so but several on this forum were with the big two so I'm sure they will put you right. LCD is worth a look.
 
J

[pj]

The driving colleges say that you have a guraranted placement with them after qualifying - Is that true?

Well of course they can guarantee this as they own Red driving School, this doesn't however guarantee that they will be able to get you pupils but you will still have to pay them a nice fat franchise fee for the pleasure of driving one of their cars

[hector]

Hi George save yourself money and heartache and avoid certain organisations like the plague.

Thousands make the mistake dont be the next one.

Sorry to be blunt but dont do it! 

[pj]

Saw a Red school car the other day with a GREEN badge in it shocked me as I thought they all scarpered asap once they qualify

[AndyBerry]

Saw a Red school car the other day with a GREEN badge in it shocked me as I thought they all scarpered asap once they qualify

lol pj... I'm with red and qualified...

George, I trained with Lets Drive (or TIC Direct as they are now being called) and received excellent training. I passed all 3 tests first time. I do, however, put that partially down to the amount of work that I did outside of my lessons. You get out what you put in - if you put nothing in, you will get nothing out.
It took me a year to qualify, but I had a 3 month break after passing pt2 as I was working a lot of hours in my other job after christmas, then my trainer was off sick. They drafted 2 others in to cover but I just couldn't get slots that were convenient to me.

As for Red, I can't comment on how they compare to other schools, but so far I haven't a bad word to say about them. I've got an unlimited supply of several different types of marketing materials, I've got a car which is insured for both me and my partner, I get business support off a regional manager with regular meetings for a chat (read 30 mins business chat, 30 mins socialising in local starbucks!), I get 'free' (paid via franchise fee as far as I'm concerned) accounting support from FBTC (they are part of the same company) and so far I have received 3 pupils off them in first 3 weeks.
At their current lesson rate in my area, I need to work approximately 10 hours a week to cover my franchise fee and fuel costs, with a little left over to put towards or even cover my other outgoings like mobile phone etc. Been with them 3 weeks and this week I've got 6 hours in, which almost covers my franchise fee.

Would I train with TIC Direct again? Yes, I suppose I would. However if I had the money, or had found this forum before handing over money, I perhaps would of looked into going with an local independent trainer instead.

Hope this helps you a bit!

Andy

[jaspersplace]

george,

I trained with Passmasters. What persuaded me to go with them, apart from the price, was their sales pitch that " it doesn't matter who you train with, its the same green badge".

Nonsense. It may well be the same green badge but the quality of training is tantamount. Most of the big schools will offer you a franchise/job placement, thats fine but you've obviously got too qualify first.

My advice is either select a local instructor with credentials ie Grade 6, ORDIT registered etc or find a national school who will give you written guarantees. Passmasters just did the training for me, squashed me in a car with two others who were way above my standard. If it wasn't for my own sheer determination to pass plus investing a small sum in trainer aids, I would never have got through.

[hector]

" it doesn't matter who you train with, its the same green badge".

Thats a classic - Sounds like a quote from a scouse taxi driver

[keefidee]

Hi George,

After my 40 hours on Part 3 I was offered placements through TIC and also did my own research regarding the back up and support that would be available. I decided that the placement offers were not in my interest and found a local school who had successfully taken on PDI's and helped them to pass.
The franchise fee with the local school was very reasonable and provided enough pupils of various abilities for me to develop my skills  ( Do not fall into the trap of taking on too much work-remember that you are learning, not earning!). I leased my first car through Robinson's and still continue to do so.
I subsequently gained my Green badge and obtained a pleasing grade at check test with positive and encouraging comments from the S/E.
I am still with my original franchise school and even though we have the occasional lean time I am currently working around 25 hours a week. The areas I operate in are very competitive, with other schools offering silly deals like '5 lessons for £20' however we charge £18/Hour which appears to be about the same level that similar schools in the area are offering. I am a firm believer that you get what you pay for!

You are correct in your scepticism about earning potential for your chosen career, it does not come easy, early or indeed at all in some cases. I would recommend lots of research in your area to assess what would be a realistic result of all the hard work in front of you.

To put all this into perspective, would I do it all again if I was faced with the same decisions.
Without a doubt YES.
I enjoy my job, it also allows me to structure my days (to a degree) to be able to do other things I enjoy. Financially I have good weeks and not so good weeks but having been Self Employed for about 20-25 years previously, I am well used to it. Think carefully about the Self Employment issue to confirm that it is a lifestyle you can cope with, it will mean quite a few changes from the Employed mentality.

I hope some of my comments help you come to a decision. If you think I could help you further, do not be afraid to PM me.

Good luck.

Keith