I have lost my confidence following an accident can you help?
Most definitely. An accident can be a traumatic event in our lives and it is important to recognise that if you are suffering stress whilst attempting to get back into driving, this can cause greater problems. We would spend time talking to you about how you feel about certain aspects of your driving, and conduct confidence building sessions around your specific needs. This is very much a coaching and mentoring approach and we would go at a pace that suits you and helps you to regain confidence.
Would I be able to use my own car for confidence building sessions?
Response: Yes absolutely, we just need to check licence and insurance details and of course the car needs to be fully roadworthy. Often an initial assessment drive in a dual controlled/Instructor car is required, so the instructor can assess any issues and keep you safe. In the main, confidence building sessions are conducted in client’s own vehicle after an assessment drive.
I have not driven for some years can you help me get back to driving?
Yes, we can help. To start we would recommend an assessment drive in an instructor’s dual controlled car, after which we can talk through with you any key areas or your concerns. We generally find that people are surprised at how quickly they get back into the swing of driving. Of course, this depends on your level of skill and experience prior to stopping driving. We run refresher road-craft sessions, tailored to your needs, which can cover specific aspects of driving which you may not be familiar with, including night drives, dual carriage way and smart motorway driving, complex roundabouts and city driving.
I have never been confident with dual carriageway or motorway driving, can you help?
Yes, we most certainly can help. We run 3-hour dual carriage way and motorway sessions which cover elements like using slip roads to join and leave dual carriageways and motorways. A common concern is use of slip roads to join dual carriageways and motorways, in particular speed and safe gap judgments when using them. We will tailor the session to meet your needs or run a generic dual carriageway / motorway session.
My husband and I feel we would benefit from a joint refresher driving lesson, is this possible?
Yes, it is possible to have joint training sessions and there is usually some benefit from being able to see each other and learn together. Observing your partner or family member for half the session gives you a new perspective on the challenges and techniques we employ to keep you safe. If you find extended time driving tiring, a buddy trainee can give you regular change overs would be beneficial to keep you fresh. Fees for these buddy lessons can be discussed by ringing Sarah Hart.
I am from a country where I was taught to drive on the right-hand side of the road, can you help me get used to UK driving?
Yes we have regular clients who come to us for UK driving familiarisation, ranging from sessions on city driving, roundabouts, dual carriageways, and motorways. It is usual to have an assessment drive in the instructor’s car to help assess your road skills, and to plan together the best way to structure your session to build confidence in driving on the left. We would also recommend a refresher of the highway code and rules and our recommended software for this is the DVSA Learning Zone, which is user friendly, affordable to gives scored feedback, the link is: https://www.dvsalearningzone.co.uk/
I need to refresh my understanding of rules of the road and new road markings, can you recommend anything?
Yes, we would recommend looking at the DVSA applications in their Learning Zone, which refresh through easy to read sessions the core aspects of the Highway Code. Usefully it also provides practice hazard perception sessions. The DVSA package is affordable, reliable and provides instant feedback on your performance. A link to this application is: https://www.dvsalearningzone.co.uk/
Have you got any videos or other materials that may help me refresh?
Yes, Drive Hart have a Youtube channel with briefing videos which are provided free of charge. They cover a wide range of briefings on tackling Roundabouts, mini roundabouts, Junctions, Crossroads etc. It is worth refreshing your understanding of basic rules using this and the link to the DVSA learning Zone provided above. Also see our full list of links to helpful resources. Link to Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFQdnMICPTB77ftm-3qnnEg?view_as=subscriber