Passing Your Test And Cheaper Car Insurance

How You Can Get The Best Tuition, Pass Your Test And Get lower Premiums

Here's what you should do to have the best possible chance of passing your UK practical driving test first time and getting the lowest insurance rates possible:

1. Get the Right Amount of Practice

Government statistics show that individuals who pass their practical driving test first time in England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales have completed at least 40 hours of professional tuition and at least 22 hours of private practice.

2. Choose A Qualified Instructor in Your Area

Did you know that all driving instructors have to practice on real pupils? Yes, while in training they could be practicing on you while you fork out £20+ not knowing the difference.

Don't get me wrong, everyone has to start somewhere but you should know the experience of your instructor if you want the best chance of success. Price isn't everything after all, so do you want a trainee instructor or the real deal!

It's easy to find out, just ask if your instructor is fully qualified or a trainee when you're shopping around. You can also check when your instructor arrives for your lesson by looking for a badge in the windscreen that has to be displayed by law. The badge will be RED for a trainee or GREEN for a fully qualified instructor. You take your choice.

3. Super Tip - Get THE Best Driving Instructor

As I write, all fully qualified instructors are graded according to their teaching ability by the DSA. The grades are as follows on on 1 - 6 basis:

• Grade 4 - the driving instructor is competent
• Grade 5 - the driving instructor is good
• Grade 6 - the driving instructor has reached a very high standard

Any grade given below 4 would mean immediate DSA testing and possible removal from the registry. You can request the grade of an instructor here (this is a DSA pdf document) as it's classed as confidential by the DSA.

You can request the grade from the driving school itself and high grade instructors will be only glad to tell you how good they are! You should bear in mind that very few are awarded Grade 6 - happy hunting!

4. Know the Reasons Why Most People Fail

According to the DSA's latest figures only 43% of people pass their driving test. If you have a particular weakness then do some extra practice. Here are the main reasons for failure:

5. Know the Driving Test Routes

I know, examiners frown upon it but let's face it, half the battle is knowing where you're going right? Any decent instructor will know your local test routes and if you want to know all of the routes (to practice in your own vehicle) then you can request them. here

Example:
If you wanted to find out the test routes for the Birmingham area you could find them here: http://www.dsa.gov.uk/search/search.aspx, or London test routes

Just do a search to see if one has been published. You can always request one under the freedom of information act.

6. Choose Your Test Centre Wisely

I realise that not everyone of you has a choice of test centre. If you live in the Outer Hebredes then you're limited - but if you're in a big city then the pass rates can be quite startling.

Example:
A sample from Birmingham centres differed as follows:
Birmingham (Kings Heath) Test Centre Pass Rate - 30%
Birmingham (Kingstanding ) Test Centre Pass Rate - 41%

So which one would you fancy your chances at?

There could be many reasons for differing pass rates but it is worth noting the differences so you can make an informed decision on where to take your test.

Do your own checks here

7. Be Prepared!

Or is that the Scouts? Anyway, most people fail because they're not ready to take the practical driving test (not enough practice). The other main reason is NERVES!!!

Yes, some people are so racked with nerves that they don't do themselves justice on the day. You may know what I'm talking about if you've failed already and it's not nice. So, how to overcome them?

Now, please take me seriously when I suggest this - because it could work for you too... HYPONOSIS.

I can confirm that hypnosis has worked for thousands of people in all kinds of situations - including taking tests. You'll know how expensive and disappointing it can be to fail so why not give it a try - it might just work!

8. How to Get Lower Car Insurance As A Learner

Now you know the old saying "practice makes perfect - right? OK, you may not achieve perfection but you'll get so much better and be safer with a lot of driving expereince under your belt.

So if you can, you will need access to suitably insured vehicle to drive and to practice A LOT.

Basically you've got few choices, you either get your own car and insure that with your parent as a named driver or be put on someone elses policy. It's not cheap to insure a learner but getting quotes from companies who specialise is essential ...

Click here for cheap car insurance for learners >>

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