Anyone on here gone down this route as a career? Looking for a few tips as to what you have to do to train people to drive HGV’S?
A quick google search shows you dont need to take any more tests etc as you would to teach car driving but to just of held a HGV licence for at least 3 years,
A good way to ensure you will be home every night 
Thanks in advance.
You’re right to suggest that you don’t need to sit the three part DSA test to become a HGV Instructor. I spent over 35 years at a well known firm with my last 23 as a distribution manager. In Oct 14 I left on voluntary redundancy terms & set out teaching the dreaded DCPC at various training schools which led me to start road instruction.
I had no qualifications in teaching people to drive HGVs but what I do have is plenty of patience & enthusiasm. Leading on from road instruction I then also prepared candidates for their tests on mod 4s ( people with grandfather rights i. e. drivers who passed their car test pre 97) don’t have to do.
Like everything else you have good days & bad days & it’s gratifying when a candidate passes their tests. I’ve have quite a successful pass rate. I work as a freelance instructor & am not always fixed up with work so when I’m not teaching I take to the road myself with a couple of agencies.
Remember if you set out to become a HGV instructor there are no dual controls & you are at the mercy of some people who have never been in a truck in their lives.
I hope this as been some use to you.
There are plenty of us that could do this as a job… Thing is, how much money makes it “worth the while” when someone like me would be giving up a cushy night shift to exchange instead for the 9-5 drudgery of some random driver’s bulls hit monday to friday every week? Having the knowhow of a subject to teach, and even being able to teach it - means little if you’ve got a short temper with people that get on your ■■■■…
Imagine Me as a trainer with some lefty for example… It’ll be ME that never hears the end of it - not the “Pupil” having to put up with any of my “pontificating”… 
“Who’s that guy pontificating over there?”
“That’s Winseer. Just Ignore him fella…”
“If that’s Winseer - then I’m the Pope!”
“Nah Mate - If he’s pontificating - he IS the pope!”
Winseer:
There are plenty of us that could do this as a job… Thing is, how much money makes it “worth the while” when someone like me would be giving up a cushy night shift to exchange instead for the 9-5 drudgery of some random driver’s bulls hit monday to friday every week? Having the knowhow of a subject to teach, and even being able to teach it - means little if you’ve got a short temper with people that get on your ■■■■…
You can know everything there is to know about HGVs/PCVs and be brilliant at driving them, but if you haven’t got the right temperament and attitude you would never make even a half decent driving instructor.
I applied for a training position in Nottingham (wages not disclosed in the advertisement) and was offered an interview via email. I emailed the chap back to ascertain the wages and I would have been near enough halving what I was earning at NFT. Probably a nice job though.
tachograph:
Winseer:
There are plenty of us that could do this as a job… Thing is, how much money makes it “worth the while” when someone like me would be giving up a cushy night shift to exchange instead for the 9-5 drudgery of some random driver’s bulls hit monday to friday every week? Having the knowhow of a subject to teach, and even being able to teach it - means little if you’ve got a short temper with people that get on your ■■■■…You can know everything there is to know about HGVs/PCVs and be brilliant at driving them, but if you haven’t got the right temperament and attitude you would never make even a half decent driving instructor.
I know. I don’t suffer fools, and the thing about being an instructor of any sort is that you start out with a fool - and the instructor is supposed to make them wise… I wouldn’t have the patience. I know my own limitations.
“Those who can - do. Those who cannot - teach.”
I trained to be a car instructor, lasted 2 weeks in the real world - it’s full of numpties.
A good way to see if its the job for you is to pass the advanced driving test and become a volunteer tutor/observer
A few good hints and tips there thanks all, Mind i expected the pay to be high earnings due to the price of training, some my area are £1300 per person cab sharing £2600 a week aslong as you get the buisness of course,
Just out of interest to start your own training school do you need a O licence for training purposes? There is a good size yard to rent near myself would make a really good location, Always had this idea in the back of my mind
TruckerAds:
A few good hints and tips there thanks all, Mind i expected the pay to be high earnings due to the price of training, some my area are £1300 per person cab sharing £2600 a week aslong as you get the buisness of course,Just out of interest to start your own training school do you need a O licence for training purposes? There is a good size yard to rent near myself would make a really good location, Always had this idea in the back of my mind
No O licence needed
Exempt EU tacho regs
Taxed as private LGV
Exempt tacho calibration as long as seal remains intact - think that is right from memory
Start costing out all the overheads excluding wages and you will see where the money goes !!
Cost of lorry & trailer up keep of it
Yard to store in reverse area or have an agreement somewhere
before you even start
But then there are plenty trainers on here mostly in the Newbies section you could ask them some advice
I did it for a while - good experience and met some nice people. Money was not brilliant though and of course you had the agonising wait for the truck with examiner on board to reappear at the test centre and do the uncouple/couple procedure and try and read the body language of your pupil to see how it’s gone. And pretty chilly standing around in the yard teaching reversing etc.
I think it helps to be fairly chatty - on breaks I’d end up talking to pupils about anything from holidays to carburettors - helps with the nerves.
Office hours though finished at 16.15 every day.
There’s been some fair comments above and there’s not much else to say apart from the traditional route of entering the industry.
I have a simple method of assessing wannabee instructors. Firstly I have to “take” to them. If their personality doesn’t come across then I wont go any further. But, if that is ok, I take them out on the road with me driving. I’ll systemically repeat a fault until they can identify it. Once they’ve told me what it is, I’ll move on to another. This establishes some very basic knowledge.
The next stage is an assessment of their own driving.
If all is well, I’ll take them on and train them for my own staff or offer a course of training to get them up to scratch to go elsewhere.
All my successful candidates are automatically registered with National Vocational Driving Instructor Register which is recognised by DVSA now that the DSVA register has closed.
The biggest problem, IMO, is that folks tend to shadow for a few days and then they’re let loose. I believe this is unfair to the candidate but the law allows it so it will doubtless continue.
I believe it’s a brilliant profession for an experienced driver with enough patience to join. Home every night. No early starts/late finishes/RDC’s! And, working for the right school, a pretty good pay deal as well.
Pete 