Well, I felt this assessment went well.
Was in an 18t rental auto with a knackered drivers seat which wouldn’t lock, meaning I had to sit bolt upright as it gave way when leaning back lol.
Test drive was literally only five mins around the estate and back with no reversing manoevres, but the assessor made it clear that drivers would be trained up so a bit of leeway there I’m guessing - was more to check I wasn’t a total nutter!
Assessor was a really decent bloke and it was a stark contrast to my DHL assessment where the agency hadn’t told the assessor I was a new passer, causing him go and phone them (presumably to complain). This chap said that as an ex-driver he takes pride in helping new passers develop into confident professional drivers and seemed supportive.
If offered the job, I’ll spend the first day in the yard learning the paperwork and safe tail lift/pallet procedures etc. Second day will be deliveries with the trainer accompanying, and third day will be more deliveries but with the trainer taking more of a back seat. He’ll then reappraise me in a few weeks to see where I need further development. As a new passer this all sounded very appealing to me and I don’t think it was all waffle as he mentioned that he’s the first in the company to do this role and is laying down the groundwork - i.e. is in his interest to do it thoroughly.
I was honest about my upcoming DHL assessment on Wed, but I’ve gotta say that I’m seriously considering taking this role if offered, despite being £10p/h rather than £13, as I think it’ll really help in giving me the necessary skills. When I told the previous DHL assessor I was a new pass he said “well I better show you everything now” and proceeded to show me how to operate the tacho, fridge, cooler report printouts, hydraulics etc, and reams of paperwork, and my first thought was “how the hell am I going to remember this all in a week’s time if I get the job and haven’t been shown since.”