Hi Guys
I have about 9 years experience driving artics, w&d and rigids for a living (I also have a bike licence), and am looking into becoming a driving instructor. In a past life I used to teach outdoor education, and I would love to go back to training/teaching.
I am also considering becoming a car driving instructor, although that market may be a wee bit saturated. Has anyone on this site had any experience in this realm, particularly in Devon and Somerset? Is there a living to be made doing this kind of work?
It’s quite a commitment in terms of my training and renewing the licence to teach every four years (HGV), but I am ready for that.
Thank you
Suggest you contact the Institute of Advanced Motoring or RoSPA sure they will point you in the right direction
My brother did this with Red driving school and it proved costly.
Saturated market
Students not turning up or instructor hoping for deals
no work still have to pay the franchise
He gave it up after a year
cheersdrive:
Hi Guys
I have about 9 years experience driving artics, w&d and rigids for a living (I also have a bike licence), and am looking into becoming a driving instructor. In a past life I used to teach outdoor education, and I would love to go back to training/teaching.
I am also considering becoming a car driving instructor, although that market may be a wee bit saturated. Has anyone on this site had any experience in this realm, particularly in Devon and Somerset? Is there a living to be made doing this kind of work?
It’s quite a commitment in terms of my training and renewing the licence to teach every four years (HGV), but I am ready for that.
Thank you
I was a car instructor in North Wales for 9 years. Loved the job but found the money too hit and miss, a few cancellations and you could end up losing £1-200 in a week one week I was over £300 down on what I expected that week. However the job satisfaction I got when someone passed and after their first ever lesson was something I haven’t experienced either before or since. I do admit I was possibly in wrong area as North Wales unfortunately is quite a impoverished area, The Devon area may be better. People do make a living out of it.
mattecube:
My brother did this with Red driving school and it proved costly.
Saturated market
Students not turning up or instructor hoping for deals
no work still have to pay the franchise
He gave it up after a year
The car instructor model followed the pub landlord model.
Which sucked in loads of clueless mugs with a few grand spare, in an already saturated market.
This harks back to when ex steelworkers and ex miners had huge redundancy payouts & where clueless what to do, the only people who made any money where the salesmen. Leaving the mugs with empty pockets, disappointment and a bitter aftertaste.
Because the only experience they had in the pub was proping up the bar supping 8-12 pints a day
Tbh the OP should be asking how much does HGV training pay?
Can he make a living out of it?
cheersdrive:
Has anyone on this site had any experience in this realm, particularly in Devon and Somerset? Is there a living to be made doing this kind of work?
My wife has been a driving instructor for at least 12 yrs now and does very well. In a way she’s lucky as we live in Bristol so she doesn’t need to travel far in between lessons which is a godsend and something you need to think about. It was hard work at first but luckily she wasn’t the main earner so that was a help and again something to think about.
There is a living to be made but you will need to do some evenings and weekends don’t forget.
mattecube:
do you know my brother?
No … But do you have any good looking sisters, or nubile 20 something daughters?
Thanks very much for the replies so far, much appreciated.
Regarding the franchise driving school operations, their pitfalls are well documented online.
Thanks for the info BB.
cheersdrive:
Thanks very much for the replies so far, much appreciated.
Regarding the franchise driving school operations, their pitfalls are well documented online.
Thanks for the info BB.
Where is your patch going to be ?
My base is Exeter. So about a third of the size of Bristol in terms of population. Exeter has a big student population and is a reasonably affluent area.
I would imagine that most people start out working for someone else. Either as an employee, or by leasing the car and brand.
Hello CD I had the same idea as yourself 35 years ago. I wanted to teach people to drive and looked into BSM which I was very tempted with.
However one day I noticed an advert in the local paper for an LGV Instructor which also said training will be given if necessary.
This prospect suited me even better than cars so I went for interviews and tests and got the job. They trained me for about 18 months then put me through my RTITB LGV course which was hard but satisfying. I thouroughly enjoyed the learning process and found great satisfaction getting people through their tests. They also put me through my PCV so I went on to doing that as well.
The job was great but the wages were no better than what I had been earning on the road so to cut a long story short I applied for a job as an instructor with the MOD.
Having passed a full day of tests and interviews I got offered a position and never looked back. This job was far more involved and included many types of training including cars. I must admit I enjoyed the commercial training far better.
The problem nowadays is the training has changed from teaching someone to drive to basically getting them through a test.
Not a step in the right direction from what I have seen and not so rewarding for the instructor I feel.
Anyway I still know a few people doing car training and they all make a very good living for a lot less hours than you would on the road for the same money. Only downside is most of the work is evenings and weekends. If that suits you I would go for it.
It’s all about getting a good reputation and the only way to do that is by hard work and doing the job properly.
It is not as easy as some think to be a good instructor and like anything else you will improve with experience. If you are not a patient person forget it although saying that I learned to be more patient as I went along.
Personally if I were you I would be contacting any local LGV schools to see if there was any chance of a way in.
Hope this helps in some way.
All the best.
cheersdrive:
My base is Exeter. So about a third of the size of Bristol in terms of population. Exeter has a big student population and is a reasonably affluent area.
I would imagine that most people start out working for someone else. Either as an employee, or by leasing the car and brand.
Exeter would be a good base, my cousin tried it but he lived out in the sticks and was travelling half hour or more for lessons then maybe 45 minutes back the other way and just couldn’t make it pay. Students can be good as they could pass your name on to their mates but they have a habit at times of being skint and will cancel.
bald bloke:
cheersdrive:
My base is Exeter. So about a third of the size of Bristol in terms of population. Exeter has a big student population and is a reasonably affluent area.
I would imagine that most people start out working for someone else. Either as an employee, or by leasing the car and brand.
Exeter would be a good base, my cousin tried it but he lived out in the sticks and was travelling half hour or more for lessons then maybe 45 minutes back the other way and just couldn’t make it pay. Students can be good as they could pass your name on to their mates but they have a habit at times of being skint and will cancel.
Is there no chance of them paying up front?
albion1971:
bald bloke:
cheersdrive:
My base is Exeter. So about a third of the size of Bristol in terms of population. Exeter has a big student population and is a reasonably affluent area.
I would imagine that most people start out working for someone else. Either as an employee, or by leasing the car and brand.
Exeter would be a good base, my cousin tried it but he lived out in the sticks and was travelling half hour or more for lessons then maybe 45 minutes back the other way and just couldn’t make it pay. Students can be good as they could pass your name on to their mates but they have a habit at times of being skint and will cancel.
Is there no chance of them paying up front?
Some will buy in blocks of 5 or 10 for example but not very often. Her rules are cancel less than 24 hrs and you still have to pay and to be fair most will still pay up but for those that don’t then she will put a letter out to them but doesn’t get much joy so will not take them out again till they pay up. She sometimes gets people who turn up but say they have no money and will pay next time !! I mean would you order a pint or a meal then say “actually i ain’t got any money on me i’ll pay next time” ffs.
Thanks albion.
I am looking into the multi vehicle type training schools, from vans to artics.
Your comment about training people to pass a test is correct, as was the case for my class 1 reversing training, “turn the unit so you half cover the letter ‘C’ on the trailer”!
Good comments about poor payers BB. The statement ‘sorry I appear to have left my wallet at home/hotel/work’ still makes me flinch!
Hi there
Before you go into the ADI thing, you need to be aware of the travel distance to lessons. If you live in a large town/city, no real problem.
If you live in the sticks like I do, then a 20+ minute commute to a pupil (plus fuel) soon makes a big impact on your available working hours and costs.
But, as other have said, great job satisfaction and brilliant fun. Long unsociable hours (weekends, evenings, early starts for the 8.45 test…)
Your choice on lessons, route, times, everything. Want an hour off for the dentist, no problem, but you don’t get paid!
Something that no-one told me was that in my area it is seasonal work. Flat out July-September, then chuff all. College holidays etc.
You need to be at the top of your game for driving, the ADI test is a piece of wee wee compared to the standard required for an ADI (car).
I did it for a couple of years and had a great time, but going with a national company incurred too high costs.
Once on my own and part time, it was a supplement to my regular income. (cheap car and insurance and low running costs)
Once again, you will regale stories for years to come it is such good way of life.
Steps to get an ADI ticket
Pass your theory and hazard perception with very high marks (no limit to attempts)
Pass a driving assessment with no more than five marks (3 attempts max)
Pass the teaching part (3 attempts max)
Have fun
If you want a chat, drop me a PM
Cheers
Paul
And one other aspect
Always have their “cash on the dash” before you set off.
No money, no drive, simples…
albion1971:
Hello CD I had the same idea as yourself 35 years ago. I wanted to teach people to drive and looked into BSM which I was very tempted with.
However one day I noticed an advert in the local paper for an LGV Instructor which also said training will be given if necessary.
This prospect suited me even better than cars so I went for interviews and tests and got the job. They trained me for about 18 months then put me through my RTITB LGV course which was hard but satisfying. I thouroughly enjoyed the learning process and found great satisfaction getting people through their tests. They also put me through my PCV so I went on to doing that as well.
The job was great but the wages were no better than what I had been earning on the road so to cut a long story short I applied for a job as an instructor with the MOD.
Having passed a full day of tests and interviews I got offered a position and never looked back. This job was far more involved and included many types of training including cars. I must admit I enjoyed the commercial training far better.
The problem nowadays is the training has changed from teaching someone to drive to basically getting them through a test.
Not a step in the right direction from what I have seen and not so rewarding for the instructor I feel.
Anyway I still know a few people doing car training and they all make a very good living for a lot less hours than you would on the road for the same money. Only downside is most of the work is evenings and weekends. If that suits you I would go for it.
It’s all about getting a good reputation and the only way to do that is by hard work and doing the job properly.
It is not as easy as some think to be a good instructor and like anything else you will improve with experience. If you are not a patient person forget it although saying that I learned to be more patient as I went along.
Personally if I were you I would be contacting any local LGV schools to see if there was any chance of a way in.
Hope this helps in some way.
All the best.
Brings back memories of my instructor training with the RTITB. The worst module was the theory but having to give a lecture to about thirty disinterested youths about the perils of junctions in city centres (with the examiner amongst them in the back row) was pretty grim also.
We did a driving assessment also which was an hour and a half with a Volvo unit and a flat doing everything from town centres to single track country lanes and I only got three minors - don’t think I’d manage that again!
Our trainer was great and he taught us how to tell your pupils what you wanted them to do - he would drive and we would play the part of the instructor. We were coming up to a roundabout and he said what do you want me to do and I said carry straight on …and he did just that, right through the middle of it. Well, that was a lesson learnt 
Due to circumstance beyond my control I didn’t teach for long but I got a reasonable pass rate and met some great guys. but the emphasis was always on passing the test - I always felt it should be more than that.