So when you were singing Auld Lang Syne on New Years Eve, could you possibly have imagined what 2020 had in store for you? Me neither. In fact none of us could have foreseen what was about to happen to our lives and the world in general. Like most of you I have been staying indoors and obeying the governments Civid 19 guidelines, because one thing is for sure, we are not observers in this pandemic, we are all participants and we can all make a difference as to when things get back to normal.
'Back to normal' is a phrase that is heard in just about every conversation at the moment. Whether it's on the phone, in the street, on Zoom or Skype, we all want things to get back to normal. But we all know that normal is never going to be the same again post Covid, so we need to find a new way of making things as near normal as possible. Like all driving instructors, I am wanting to get back to work as soon as is possible, but there is much work and preparation still to do to make the environment in the car as safe as possible for both myself and my customers. Undoubtably we will, at first anyway, need to wear some form of PPE (personal protection equipment) and the car interior will need cleaning down between lessons to ensure it is safe for use. Lesson times will need to be changed and the time between lessons will need to be longer to allow for that cleaning process. At the time of writing this, the DVSA have still not announced when testing will resume in the UK and under what circumstances etc. Anyway, rest assured, if you are one of my customers or are thinking about learning to drive with me I will make sure every effort is made to make the post Covid experience a pleasant and safe one for us both. 
The government seems to be hinting that a return to work in July will be possible so I'm planning on getting the roof sign back on then and getting back out there. I just hope i remember how to teach!
Stay safe and remember, the outcome of this pandemic is in our hands only. 

It's always been the same, a student takes lessons, passes their test and disappears into the world to become (we hope) a good and safe driver. 
The reality these days with rising fuel and insurance costs is that many newly passed drivers can't afford a car straight away or maybe they are going off to university etc so don't need to drive. Months or sometimes years can pass before they finally get back behind the wheel in a car of their own and consequently their ability levels and confidence have suffered in that time. A recent study found that 26% of drivers under 30 had spent 6 months or longer without driving after passing their test and over a quarter of them said they believed that time 'away' had contributed to them having an accident when re-starting driving. This makes sense, but what can be done to help the situation? 
As a driving instructor most of my business is helping beginners to start driving and eventually pass their test, but I'm also here when people need help to get back behind the wheel and regain their confidence after a long period away. Refresher lessons are always available and are a great way to get that confidence back and improve the drivers skill levels either in their own car or a dual controlled car and of course motorway tuition or a Pass Plus course can also help. 
The mantra 'Safe Driving For Life' is still as strong today as its always been and as instructors. we are always happy to help coach someone back up to full speed. Excuse the pun! 

As from today, 1st March 2017 you will get 6 points on your licence and a £200 fine if you're caught using your mobile phone while driving. If you get caught twice for the same offence you will be required to attend court where you could be fined up to £1000. This new ruling has serious ramifications for new drivers who have held their licence for less than 2 years as being caught just once will mean they have to forfeit their licence and re-take both the theory and practical tests again. Road safety website 'Think" has all the details of the new rules at www.think.direct.gov.uk 
To be clear the new rules apply to not only making phone calls but also following maps, taking or making texts and engaging in social media while behind the wheel. You CAN still use a mobile phone if you are safely parked or to call 999 in an emergency when its unsafe or impractical to stop. Using 'hands free' is not illegal but if it distracts you and affects your ability to drive safely then you can still be prosecuted by the police. The advice being given today is to put your phone away when you get in the car and make your glovebox your phone box! 
It's hoped that these new rules will prevent accidents caused by drivers being distracted by their mobile devices and so save lives. 

In a world where we are becoming increasingly dependent on our mobile devices for 'staying in touch' it should come as no surprise that using a mobile phone while driving is becoming more and more the excepted 'norm', especially among young inexperienced drivers who know that it's illegal but are prepared to take the risk of getting caught. Currently being caught using a mobile in the car has a £100 fine and 3 points on the licence, but under new proposals the government is looking to increase that to 6 points and a £200 fine. This would mean that a driver holding a full licence for less than 2 years would automatically get a ban and be made to re-take both the theory and practical driving tests again. It's hoped that this new system will make all drivers but especially newly qualified ones think twice before using a mobile phone on the move. 
Do I agree with this new harder line? Absolutely. Most new drivers suffer from the over confidence thing and always assume it won't happen to them. We've all been there. But the distraction of a mobile device in a car is something that needs to be tackled head on before it results in a head on collision. Will it prove an effective deterrent to todays mobile addicted drivers, only time will tell. The new rules should come into force in 2017. 

With a candidates ability to follow directions from a Sat Nav being considered for the revised driving test in 2017, I wondered which system would work best for me and my pupils during training. For the 'new' test the examiner will provide a stand alone unit like a Tom Tom or Garmin with a pre programmed route for the candidate to follow during the now extended 20 minute independent driving part of the test. But in the real world I believe most people would use their beloved smart phone's built-in map facility, ie Google maps on Android or Apple maps on the iPhone. With this in mind I have recently been testing all the main contenders to find the best way of teaching this valuable life skill to my pupils.
I borrowed a Tom Tom and a Garmin Sat Nav unit and tried driving some routes around Scarborough with mostly pretty good results, apart from some very strange street name pronunciations. I found these units easy enough to use but some of my pupils struggled a bit at first but then soon had their routes programmed in. Then I moved to the smart phones and their Apple and Google maps, which for some reason I assumed would be inferior to the dedicated units, but I was in for a surprise. Apple maps was clean and precise with a nice screen presentation but even at full volume was difficult to hear directions clearly in the car. Google maps also had a clean and easy to read screen but more importantly the audio was much clearer and gave a lot more driver information including properly pronounced street names. After all the testing I think it's right to assume that the majority of my pupils will take the easy route (excuse the pun) and turn to their smart phone to get directions after passing their test, so am planning on using Google maps on an iPhone as my in-car training tool and offering Apple maps to those that would prefer it. The Tom Tom and Garmin have gone back and I have a sneaking suspicion that like a lot of 'old tech' their day's maybe numbered as smart phones take over as source of all knowledge! 
​Anybody remember map books?