I know as a trainer how much the cost of training fluctuates in the LGV training industry. It’s not like buying a tin of beans at one of the supermarket chains where the price will be approx the same.
So my question is how much the paying trainees realistically think they should be paying for a class C training course.
I know we have the brokers and also the north south divide.
So not to break any rules I won’t state what I charge.
Paul
Hi Paul,
Excluding the medical and the theory training and tests (because I’ve already done this) and excluding Initial CPC (because I don’t need this)…I am left needing 3 or 4 days of Cat C driver training and the test itself. For this, it seems the going rate is around £1000. But for me, the closer that figure is to £0, the better.
DAF_MAN:
Hi Paul,Excluding the medical and the theory training and tests (because I’ve already done this) and excluding Initial CPC (because I don’t need this)…I am left needing 3 or 4 days of Cat C driver training and the test itself. For this, it seems the going rate is around £1000. But for me, the closer that figure is to £0, the better.
If you are looking for closest to £0, you will probably find the value of the truck will be similar.
Just recently a trainee had his instructor falling asleep next to him in a poorly maintained truck. But it’s ok because his wallet wasn’t as light as some.
I know a lot of people look at the hole in their wallet / ■■■■■ as being the deciding factor of anything 
Personally I would pay the true value of the service.
If you have DSA approved test centre on site and well maintained vehicles with good instructors, then £1000-1200 would seem a good value quote.
If someone who ran out of an uneven yard, 30 miles from the test centre, in old wagons quoted me 1000-1200, I’d be P’ing myself laughing all the way home without parting with any of my hard earned.
dar1976:
DAF_MAN:
Hi Paul,Excluding the medical and the theory training and tests (because I’ve already done this) and excluding Initial CPC (because I don’t need this)…I am left needing 3 or 4 days of Cat C driver training and the test itself. For this, it seems the going rate is around £1000. But for me, the closer that figure is to £0, the better.
Might have to put my prices up then
IME trainers tend to follow each others’ pricing. But what they dont always do is to match the service offering. I took over my school in 1984, by which time I was already a reasonably experienced businessman having been a coach operator in the seventies leading to haulage in the late seventies. I deliberately ignored the local offering, instead preferring to design my own. Having done that, the secret is to cost it properly. Then add a sensible profit and, hey presto, there’s your price!
In 1986 an instructor left me to “go on his own”. There were no ill feelings and I actually sold him his first truck. Checking the local paper for my ad I noticed that his ad was below and that he was advertising £14 per hour whereas I was £15. I rang him and asked why he was now only worth £14. His response: “I’ve got to get customers somehow”. The discussion centred on the perceived importance of him being cheaper. So the next week I started charging £19.50 and have never looked back! Sadly he died at a relatively young age of cancer. Having been trading for about 5 years the total value of his 3 trucks and a coach amounted to no more than scrap money. He never made any money to maintain or improve the vehicles and his service suffered as a result. One of the finest trainers I’ve known - but should never have tried it on his own.
The hard fact is that running a training school is a business. A business that doesn’t make profit is no use to anyone. But a properly run business that employs quality staff, spends money on excellent facilities and vehicles will continue to build it’s huge portfolio of happy clients.
Some training schools are run by business people with little or no knowledge of the industry, but most are run by good trainers who have never had any experience in running a business. And some run into trouble, sadly.
Paul, I have the greatest respect for your question - - but why not try it “the other way around”? Some will always book the cheapest. Thankfully, there are plenty of people out there who can see the difference and are prepared to pay a little for it.
Pete 
elmet training:
Might have to put my prices up then
Don’t put them up just yet please!
No worries Kev I will honour the price I quoted you.
Peter
I respect the fact that you a very successful training company.
I started my company from scratch
I am now in my 4th year now and getting busier and busier all the time. I have recently added a new vehicle to my company.
No doubt you have seen some posts on here from my satisfied customers.
I am very happy how things are going so why would I want to change things drastically ?
After all everyone has different overheads which I try to keep to a minimum so I can keep prices down.
Happy New year to all.
Paul
Crossed wires here Paul!! Never suggested you drastically change anything. Merely, that if you were looking at pricing as you suggest in the OP, you could try looking at it in the way I suggested.
BTW, I may as well have started from scratch - I took over a double decker with 8 hours work!!
I hope you continue with your success, Pete
Cheers Pete
May I thank you for answering some of my queries when I phoned this year.
I think Peter makes some very valid points, as always, and a business should be run as such regardless of what you sell or provide customers with.
We started from scratch 5 1/2 years ago and believe a lot of our success isn’t just price based- but the ability to provide a high quality service at a price where the customer receives " good value for money". I’m sure we have all bought something cheap in the past and gone on to regret it very quickly( buy cheap buy twice).
Quality costs and if you provide high quality training, trainers, vehicles and service the customer will be more likely( not everyone though) to use you opposed to the cheap and nasty merchant down the road.
Please before anyone gets upset- not everyone who offers cheaper offers poorer training 