Make sure the pupil is ready.
- Can they drive without help from you
- Check against the test requirements
- Are they smooth and safe
- Are they aware of what is happening around them
Can they handle the stress of the driving test.
- What are they like on a mock test
- Can they cope if everything is done in silence
- Can they deal with the unexpected
Who decided on the test, you or the pupil?
- Observation is my own fails come from pupils putting in too early.
- Having put in for one it then becomes the justification for all other subsequent bookings.
- Very hard to say no once they have done one.
- Have you been upfront with the pupil about their ability?
- Tell them sooner rather than later.
- Discuss with the pupil early.
If they are missing things when with you, what will they be like on the test.
- Do not accept they will be alright on the day.
- Performance goes down under pressure.
Guidelines as to if the pupil is ready.
- You are bored with their driving
- Would you lend them your car
- Would you want to be on the road with them
- Are there performance dips when in a new area or situation
Tests can be changed up to 6 times then cancelled and rebooked. Covid restrictions currently allow 8 changes!
To take and fail a test is horrible and also expensive. There is the test fee and the hire of the instructor’s car to pay for.
Do not let theory test expiry date put you into a test they are not ready for.
As driving instructors we have a pretty good idea of what it takes to pass. But for all our training and the hundreds of tests we take people to. Quite often a pupil will take the advice of someone who last did a driving test 30 years ago!