Terms and Conditions
1. Driving licenses:
You must hold a current, valid driving license, provisional, full or international, and produce it on (or in advance of) your first training session.
2. Fitness to drive:
You must be fit to drive with regard to legal and medical requirements. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are fit to drive on each of your lessons and test.
Sickness, tiredness, alcohol and prescribed medication may affect your driving; any of these could place you and other road users in serious danger.
Please note that some ‘over the counter’ medication may affect levels of concentration; always read the instructions on the packet. If you are taking any medication please check with your doctor or pharmacist to make sure they will not affect your driving.
If you have recently taken alcohol or drugs (legal or illegal) please inform your Driving Instructor. In the interests of public safety we reserve the right to cancel your driving lesson or refuse the use of the school car for the driving test if there is any suspicion of impairment because of illness, drugs or alcohol.
You may face action from the Police or the Crown Prosecution Service if you choose to ignore the law regarding your fitness to drive.
3. Payments and Cancellation:
Tuition fees are normally payable in advance. Payment can be made in cash directly to your driving instructor, bank transfer (ask your driving instructor for details), or debit or credit card before your driving lesson.
If either you need to cancel or re-arrange a lesson then at least 48 hours notice will be required. Failure to give notice will result in a cancellation fee which will be the full value of the cancelled lesson.
Your instructor will do everything possible to ensure that your lessons start and finish on time, but reserves the right to cancel, postpone or change lesson lengths and start/finish times under certain circumstances (e.g., dangerous weather conditions). In the event of postponement, fees paid in advance will be carried forward.
The instructor reserves the right to cancel a lesson at short notice if it is suspected that the pupil may be unfit due to the effects of alcohol, drugs (prescribed or otherwise) or any other condition that would cause his/her driving to be dangerous or illegal. In such circumstances the lesson fee will still be payable.
4. Bookings and Lesson duration:
Your instructor will endeavour to maintain regular lesson slots at the same time each week to ensure continuity of learning. However, this cannot be guaranteed.
The minimum lesson period is 60 minutes. If, for any reason, the instructor is late for the lesson he/she will make a concerted effort to inform the pupil of the estimated time of arrival, and where possible the lesson will be extended by the time due– if this is not possible the extra time will be carried forward to the next suitable lesson.
5. Training Location:
All sessions will start and finish at the same location unless alternative arrangements are made in advance.
The instructor will determine a location for practical lessons which ensures both the pupil’s and public safety – this means that the instructor may need to drive the pupil to and from the lesson location; this journey time forms part of the lesson as paid for.
6. Training vehicles:
Training vehicles provided by the school are taxed, insured for the purposes of driving tuition, fully roadworthy and fitted with dual controls.
Pupils who require tuition in their own vehicle must supply evidence from their motor insurer that the car is covered for lessons when being supervised by a professional instructor in return for payment; the car must also be taxed and hold a current MOT certificate where appropriate. Your Driving Instructor reserves the right to refuse to teach you in a car that isn’t fitted with dual controls.
7. Driving tests and bookings:
Your instructor reserves the right to refuse use of a driving school vehicle for test if he/she considers that provision of a vehicle could cause a risk to public safety.
We reserve the right to withhold the use of the driving school car for practical test if, in our opinion, the chances of passing the test are unrealistic.
Where a school car is used for test, the booking period will be based upon the instructor’s normal diary schedule.
In the event of the driving school car being unavailable on the day of the practical test for reasons of illness on our part, or for reasons of mechanical failure, we will refund test fees incurred by you in full.
Your instructor cannot be held responsible for test appointments cancelled by the DVSA due to bad weather, sickness, staff shortages or other reasons. Such cancellations are beyond the control of your instructor and therefore the lesson fee and ‘use of car’ fee for the booked period will be charged. Your instructor will advise about claiming compensation from the DVSA.
8. Code of Conduct:
Your instructor agrees to abide by the conditions of the Professional Code of Conduct (a copy of which follows). In the unlikely event of complaint or dispute the guidelines of the Code of Conduct will be adhered to.
9. Your rights:
These conditions do not affect any protection that you have under consumer legislation.
We reserve the right to change or alter any of the terms and conditions without notice, but will endeavour to inform pupils of any changes as soon as possible.