November 7, 2013
How Many Lessons?

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Many people when booking their first lesson will ask the question, ‘how many lessons do I need to pass?’ Others, at some point during their first few lessons will ask the instructor this question. It is a very common question and the answer is that there isn’t a set amount.

The DSA do recommend on average 40-45 hours of driving lessons but this varies because of a number of factors – age of the learner, how frequent lessons are and generally how quickly the pupil grasps the steps of driving.

Holly Parker of Britannia Driving School says, ‘when taking lessons you should not be aiming for a particular number of lessons but aiming for confidence in driving. That will help you pass your test and make you a good driver in the future.’

Pupils who take lessons frequently find they need fewer hours such as with intensive courses where 36 hours is spread over 1-2 weeks and this course does have a high pass rate.

Once you find that you can drive without any help or with very little help from your instructor and you are confident with the main aspects of driving and the manoeuvres, you can go for your practical test and you are likely to pass your test.

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November 6, 2013
Learning the Manoeuvres

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Ask any learner – manoeuvres are by far the most dreaded part of learning to drive. These are the bay park, turn in the road, Parallel Park and reverse round a corner. But, these manoeuvres are nothing to worry about.

Firstly, they are a very minor part of the driving test – the main thing about the driving test is the actual driving, if you have a good drive then you are more than likely to pass your driving test.

Most learners will agree that the turn in the road is the easiest of the lot whilst the Parallel Park and the reverse round a corner are somewhat more difficult. They require much multitasking, memory and coordination.

Jane Hunt of Britannia Driving School says, ‘If you break down the manoeuvres into simple steps, the task becomes less daunting’.

The main thing to remember with these manoeuvres is as long as you remember your observations (for other road users and the kerb) and you maintain control of the vehicle, you will be fine.

Simon Bush of Britannia Driving School reassures learners, ‘Very few people fail on a manoeuvre.’

Britannia’s advice is practice the manoeuvres by breaking them down, remember your observations and be confident because the likelihood of failing your test because of the manoeuvre is very small. Just remember, you will only get one manoeuvre on the test, you have around 30 minutes of driving to get through as well.

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November 4, 2013
Driving In London

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Many people regard driving in London as difficult with much traffic, large congested roundabouts and a number of drivers not being as careful as they should. For this reason, it is understandable why it would be daunting to tackle driving in London, let alone learning to drive in London.

Of course it is easy for young Londoners to put off learning to drive for these reasons as well as the excellent transport links that are easier to use than driving in London. Add to that that some of the lowest pass rates are found at London’s test centres – the reasons to put off learning to driver seem to be greater than the reasons to pick up learning to drive.

However, this should not put people off wanting to learn to drive. Learning to drive in London should not be any different to learning to drive anywhere with side roads to enable pupils to start learning and the complicated routes providing learners with significant skills that will prove useful as a driver.

Intensive courses in London are also successful as pupils will take a significant number of hours over the space of a week making the notorious London driving test significantly easier.
Don’t put off learning to drive and once you have passed keep driving, if you are still nervous about driving in London, why not look into Britannia’s refresher courses?

Safe Driving from Britannia!

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November 1, 2013
Young Drivers to Wait Longer

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Under new plans proposed by the Government, young drivers will be forced to wait until they are 18 years old to be able to take their driving test.

The powers-that-be have deemed it necessary to consider a 12-month probationary license for younger drivers to delay them driving until they are 19.

The controversial new plans also suggest a curfew for young drivers between the hours of 10pm and 5am – unless accompanied by a passenger over the age of 30.

The concept of the one year “learner stage” is to reduce the number of accidents involving young drivers. The idea involves students having to complete a minimum of 100 hours of daytime driving and at least 20 hours of night-time driving to be considered a capable driver.

The plans have been met by mixed reviews – some welcome the strategy to reduce the risk of young drivers having motoring-related accidents, whilst others deem it unnecessary and redundant.

What are your thoughts? Should the plans go ahead, or should they be scrapped?

Sound off in the comments section below!

Safe driving from Britannia!

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October 31, 2013
Sexism Towards Female Drivers By Beijing Police

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Beijing police have being accused of sexism towards female drivers after safety tips targeted at female drivers were published on their blog account.

The post, title ‘Female drivers, please pay attention and avoid driving mistakes’, police identify common mistakes which they believe are made by female drivers which include a lack of sense of direction, forgetting to release the handbrake whilst driving and failing to change gear. The police then proceed to give tips accordingly.

Police also identified another error which they regard common amongst female drivers and that is their alleged inability to remember roads and directions.

The post has attracted significant response namely from women, commenting that the faults pointed out are common to both sexes. One poster responded, ‘If this post appeared in the United States. I could go to court and sue them.’

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October 30, 2013
DVLA Services Review

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A review into how the Driver Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) can deliver better services and save money for the taxpayer has been launched by the government.

The review will consider each part of the DVLA, to identify improvements and make recommendations on how to improve services, including how best to move more services online and identifying how to increase the use of services that are already online.

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October 28, 2013
Get Ahead This Half Term

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It’s half term and a great time to get ahead in your driving. Why not book an intensive course with us and pass your test next week? We have a range of courses available depending on your driving ability. Have a look at the number of people who have passed on our intensive courses. If you did not want to start your intensive course this week, we can book you in for a course during your Christmas holidays.

You can also get a head-start on normal weekly lessons. We offer the first lesson at £10.50 and great discounts on block bookings. So why not take a few lessons this week before going back to school, university or college? All our instructors also work evenings and weekends and so you can book in your lessons for after half-term too!

Just as the weather is getting worse, what’s better than being able to avoid public transport by learning to drive?

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October 24, 2013
Measures To Reduce Cost Of Driving

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The government has announced measures to help motorists cut the cost of running a car. Below are the measures announced by Justice Secretary Chris Grayling:

– The fees charged prior to obtaining a licence will be reviewed, including the current £31 for the theory test, £62 for the practical test and £50 fee for the provisional licence, to identify any opportunity to save money for the 1.5m car drivers who take their test every year
– Whiplash cheats will be targeted by new independent panels which will ensure only evidence from accredited professionals can be considered. As a result, exaggerated or fraudulent claims will not be allowed whilst genuine claimants will get the help they deserve.
– The statutory maximum price of the MOT test for a car will be frozen at £54.85 until 2015
– In order to tackle high motorway fuel prices, new comparison road signs will be trialled that will show prices at different services stations en route.

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October 23, 2013
Films Targeting Young London Drivers

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Hounslow Council have produced two films to highlight to young drivers the ‘devastating impact of careless driving’ which were launched last week on YouTube and the council’s Facebook page.

The time-lapse films tell the stories of Georgia and Alex through their social network, as they prepare for a night out with their friends. Each film introduces the main characters through information they are sharing with friends.

In the last two years in Hounslow there have been 160 casualties involving 16-20 year olds, and the council is committed to reducing the number of young drivers killed or injured on the brother’s roads.

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October 17, 2013
Test Pass After Operation To Regain Blindness

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Joseph Lewis, 26, passed his driving test just seven weeks after a complicated operation to prevent him from a lifetime of blindness and enabled him to see. He had suffered with poor vision his whole life and had developed cataracts six months ago, forcing him to lose the little sight he had.

The life-changing operation removed the cataracts and replaced his natural lenses with artificial ones which have been surgically implanted into his eyes and work in the same way as the most advanced lenses in a pair of glasses.

Lewis had always wanted to be able to drive but it seemed impossible for him to do so but this operation has now enabled to him to drive.

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