TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The following terms and conditions set out the expectations for myself (the trainer) and for you as the student.  Please read them carefully before signing up for my services.  In employing my services as a driving instructor, it is assumed that you have agreed to these conditions.

I am an Approved Driving Instructor (ADI) having been assessed and authorised by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA).  My car is fitted with dual controls and is fully insured for driving tuition purposes.

I agree to be punctual, courteous and behave in a professional and non-discriminatory manner at all times.  It is expected that the pupil will also remain courteous and will refrain from showing aggression towards myself or other road users at all times.

I will do my best to deliver instructions and feedback in a calm and professional manner, focusing on learning opportunities rather than highlighting "mistakes".  I will not shout or make sarcastic or derogatory comments.

Smoking or vaping is not permitted in the training car at any time by either party.

Neither party will use the lesson to conduct any other form of business or personal matters without express agreement between the parties.

Mobile phones should be switched off during lesson time to avoid distractions.

Students should advise me promptly of any changes to contact details so that I can keep you informed of any changes to lessons.

You must hold a current, valid driving licence (provisional or full), which must be  produced on or in advance of our first lesson.  You must prove your entitlement to drive and provide me with a licence check code prior to our first lesson.

You must be able to read a number plate at a distance of 20.5 metres (67 feet or about 5 car lengths) with prescribed visual aids (glasses or contact lenses) if these are normally worn.  If you need to wear glasses or contact lenses to achieve this, you must wear them for every lesson.

Students should wear suitable footwear and clothing for lessons, which does not compromise safety or restrict movement and is not inappropriately revealing.

If you find yourself distracted by anything during the lesson, such as medical or mental health issues, personal matters or general discomfort, you should make this known to me in order to keep everyone safe.

You should notify me of any medication that you are taking which may affect your ability to drive safely before any lessons are booked.

In an emergency situation, it is important that you follow my instructions and allow me to take control of the steering wheel or use the dual controls, if necessary, in order to avoid an accident.  At the first available opportunity, we will pull over and discuss any such intervention and allow time to make sure that you are in a good state of mind to continue the lesson.

If I consider that a student is unfit to continue with a lesson, due to illness, fatigue or state of mind, I reserve the right to terminate the lesson early in order to keep everyone safe.

I reserve the right to cancel or terminate any lesson if you are, or I suspect that you are, under the influence of drink, drugs or legal highs (including prescription drugs).  In this instance, the full lesson fee will still be charged.

During lessons, I will make every effort to avoid damage to the vehicle.  However, if I consider that you were driving in a dangerous or reckless manner and, despite my best attempts to intervene, actual damage is caused, you will be expected to pay for all repairs to any damaged vehicles (including mine) up to the level of excess on my insurance policy.  This also applies to any damage incurred during a driving test.

Payment for lessons is payable by BACS or cash, not later than 24 hours before the start of each lesson.  Cash payments can be made at the end of each lesson for the next or future  lessons only.

Prepaid lessons are non-refundable and prices will be honoured for a period of six months only.  After six months, any unused lesson fees will become void.

Refunds will only be given in exceptional circumstances (at my discretion), and will be subject to a £25 administration fee.

Lessons cancelled by you  at least 24 hours in advance will not incur a fee.  If you cancel a lesson with less than 24 hours' notice (for whatever reason), the full fee will be lost or charged to you.

I reserve the right to cancel lessons at short notice in the event of extreme weather conditions which would make driving conditions dangerous.  In this event, your lesson fee will be rolled over onto your next rearranged lesson.  I cannot be held responsible for any additional costs involved in last minute cancellations.

Before we commence lessons, you should inform me about any pre-booked holidays or other pre-arranged commitments which are likely to affect your ability to attend all of your lessons in the agreed time slot.  This allows me to offer these times to other pupils.

If you are unable to attend more than three lessons in the agreed time slot, your slot will be offered to other pupils and your name will go back on a waiting list until another time slot becomes available, unless you pay for the missed lessons in order to retain your slot.  This is regardless of whether you have given 24 hours' notice or not.

Students should be punctual for all lessons.  The lesson time will begin at the agreed time, regardless of whether or not the student has entered the vehicle.  If a student has not arrived within 15 minutes of the agreed start time, I will forfeit the lesson and the lesson fee will be lost.

In the event that I am delayed for the start of your lesson, the time will be made up either at the end of our session or, if this is not possible, added to a future lesson.

Driving tests can be booked by either myself or the student.  If the student books their own test, they should let me have the test date and time as soon as possible.  If they fail to do this, I cannot guarantee that my car will be available for the test.

Driving tests take priority over lessons, therefore, it may occasionally be necessary to postpone lessons in order to accommodate test dates.

I reserve the right to withhold the use of my vehicle for your driving test if I consider that your driving is not to the required standard or is likely to be dangerous.

The DVSA requires three working days' notice if you wish to cancel or postpone your test date.  Failure to provide the required notice will result in the loss of your test fee.  I cannot be held responsible for any postponement or cancellation of tests by either you or the DVSA.

Hand gel will be available at the start of your lesson which you should apply before touching any controls.

If you test positive for Covid-19 you should not attend any lessons until you test negative.  The usual cancellation terms will apply (see lesson cancellation).

I will collect contact information from you at my initial visit or contact including name, address, email and phone numbers.  This information is for my use only and will not be shared with any third party.

 During lessons, I may use a forward-facing dash cam (recording the road ahead) both for insurance purposes and to help as a reflective aid to discuss in the event of any critical events during your lesson.  These recordings will only be held temporarily (unless required for legal purposes) and will be overwritten every week.