Learning to drive without an Instructor

There are many people in the UK who are learning to drive a car without using a DVSA approved driving instructor, and that is okay. In fact many do go on to pass the driving test, though not at their first attempt, and I'll explain why later, but if you want to learn to drive and for one reason or the other be it financial constraints from the credit crunch or just personal choice decide not to use the services of an ADI, here is some advice to help you on the way.

Keep it legal. Stick to the legal requirements of your provisional driving licence, by making sure you have a supervising driver aged 21 or more who has held a full british licence (in the appropriate category, Automtic can not supervise in a manual car) for at least 3 years. You must also display regulation 'L' plates on the car being used for tuition purposes, and finally make sure you are fully insured against a minimum of 3rd party incidents while out on the road learning the driving skills required to pass the practical car driving test.



Know the standards expected by the DVSA driving examiner. This is where a lot of people learning to drive with a family member or friend go wrong, they get taught to drive the way their supervisor handles the car, not what is required to pass the test, and this is why most don't pass on their first attempt!
If you want to have a very good chance of passing the driving test while learning to drive without an instructor, I strongly suggest you buy the two books listed below, one is an offical book by the DVSA who conduct the practical assessment, while the other is the most important book that any learner driver in the UK should buy.



If there is one book you should buy, it is the Highway code as it tells you how the DSA examiner expects you to deal with anything you come across on the driving test. I know many good drivers who have failed due to silly mistakes they made because of a lack of konwledge of the highway code, for less than £5 they could have avoided the expense of a second test with the DSA people. The book is small enough for you to carry around with you, so take the time to know the rules inside out, it will go along way to guarantee your success in the practical car assessment.


The more knowledge you have of what is expected by the examiner, the better prepared you will be.

Finally with the internet of today, there is no excuse for not taking advantage of the many driving test tips websites and forums that are out there giving you practical and up to date advice, remember that whoever is supervising you while learning to drive without an instructor would have taken their test at least three years ago, and a lot could have changed in that time.



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Cheap Driving Lessons.
Learning To Drive On Motorways

Learning to Drive a Car

Congrats on taking your first step to learning to drive in the UK, visiting this blog. To start learning to drive a car, you will need to apply for a provisional Licence, and can only drive with or without an instructor after this has arrived. You can then start preparing for the Theory test which you need to pass before thinking of booking the UK driving test. Well lets start at the beginning!

Provisional driving licence

An international or foreign driving license can not be used to prepare for the UK driving test, though you can drive here in the UK for the first 12 months after your first arrival, this means that you don't need to display 'L' plates even if you have a provisional licence while your foreign license is still valid and can still learn to drive that way.

Anyone normally resident in the UK and aged 17 or over can learn to drive here in the UK with a provisional license. If you are 16 and in receipt of the higher disability benefit you can also start learning.

To apply for a provisional licence to enable you to learn to drive, you can get application forms from the Post Office, and you can use their fast track system to get your ID checked, this avoids you having to send your passport or other ID documents through the post to the DVLA offices.

Some advise: While waiting for your provisional licence to arrive, you can start learning to drive by getting a copy of the Highway Code and reading it. Try to go through it twice before you get in the car, you will be amazed at how much progress this will enable you to make during your driving lessons.

The other thing you can do is start using your Theory Test CD/DVD material to prepare for the theory exam.

The Highway Code will start you on the way to learning, but you will need to read an additional book and practise your hazard perception skills. You can not however apply to sit the theory test until you've received your provisional license. Once you've received your provisional license, you can now start thinking about when you want to book your Theory Test and choosing an instructor who will help you to learn to drive a car and get you prepared for the UK driving test.

While learning to drive a car, if you only have a provisional license, you need to make sure you are being supervised by a full UK licence holder who has passed their test 3 years ago, and are at least aged 21, you must display "L" plates and be insured to drive the car you are using. If possible use qualified approved driving instructors to learn to drive, as you will be taught the correct way as required by the DSA and will not develop bad habits while learning to drive a car in the UK.

Driving Lessons

While there is no requirement by the driving standards agency that you need to take driving lessons with a DSA registered instructor while learning to drive a car here in the UK, it is advisable that you do use an ADI for this process.

One of the most important things you need to do as a learner driver is to build up good driving habits at the standard that would be expected by the DSA driving examiner on the test, as one of the reasons why the current pass rate is only 40% is that a lot of the pupils who present themselves for the test think that you just need to able able to drive, but the dsa want to make sure that you are safe, and that means doing things in a certain way. Taking professional tuition means that you will be taught to handle the car the way you will be expected to on the day of the test, performing maneuvers the proper way with all the required observations, learning how to deal with traffic in different situations and gaining from the vast experience and knowledge of your driving instructor. All this would mean that you as a learner driver will have a higher chance of passing the driving test.

Know your road signs

This might sound very obvious, but I know many people learning to drive who concentrate only on the driving skills, and the only road or traffic signs that they recognise and obey are traffic lights and numerical speed limits and there are many other symbols that need to be learnt. I advice you get a copy of DSA book Know Your Traffic Signs and familarise yourself with the many signs and road markings that you might encounter on the test. The few pounds spent on the book and time invested in reading it could save you an extra test fee and the car hiring charges you might encounter if you failed the test for a simple reason as not obey the national speed limit on a single carriageway.

Learning to drive in the uk might not be hard, but the standard required is high and there is no excuse for not being properly prepared!