Learner driver question

[LMH]

I saw a small car with a woman in the driving seat, bloke in the passenger seat and two passengers in the back.

There was an L plate on the front and back of the vehicle.

Are you allowed to carry passengers if you haven't passed your test?

Lisa

 

[Parksy]

Yes Lisa, as long as the front seat passenger holds a full UK driving licence.

 

[cokey1970]

And the supervising passenger must be at least 21 and have held a UK driving licence for 3 years.

 

[LMH]

Blimey, that sounds a bit dangerous to me. If the driver had an accident, she has the potential for four people in her vehicle to get injured, rather than two.

Lisa

 

[DomDom]

What is legal and what makes sense are two things which rarely seem to correlate these days. Perfectly legitimate but, as you are thinking, probably not the best idea in the world.

 

[jaffasdad]

The lady driving the car may not have been a learner - or have I missed something here?

 

[colin-yorkshire1]

hi all.

jaffa's dad comes up with a good point you just dont know from one observation, however even if this wasn't the case I see nothing wrong with it in principal if the learner is up to a standard where a driving test is imminent and the learner just requires practice before the test.

this is exactly the way my kids were taught to drive all of them, on obtaining a licence I took them out to a local car park and taught them the basics of clutch and brake control as well as reversing and slow speed manovering after mastering these skills they were then given professional lessons untill they were up to a standard where they could drive ok but needed practice I then allowed them to drive at every oppertunity possible on two occasions driving us on short holiday breaks "minus the van of course" using routes to aviod m/ways right up to the test date. and then after the test took them out to do some motorway driving.

all 3 kids passed first time and have clean licences and up to date none have had any major accidents so it did work, IMO there is nothing wrong with learners carring passengers provided they are up to standard and it does instill in them the responsability they have to others in the car with them.

colin

 

[LMH]

The car had L plates on the front and rear.

 

[Damian]

Just because a car has L plates on does not necessarily mean the driver is a learner.

L plates are "supposed" to be removed or covered if the driver is not th elearner, but not many people do this, and leave them showing regardless of who is driving.

I dont think it any more dangerous for a L driver to have passengers than a full licence holder, in the event of an accident it really would not matter who was driving, it would still have the potential to cause injury to all occupants.

 

[LMH]

I don't agree with your second paragraph. I could provide stats but hey ho.

 

[Damian]

Please do, showing how many L drivers have accidents which involve the other occupants of their car being injured, other than the supervising driver.

Also please how many full licence holders have accidents which involve the other occupants being injured.

 

[602]

Hi,

I have frequently seen driving school cars with passengers in rear ..... I assumed the instructor was aiming at maximum utilisation of car and time.

I taught my wife to drive in a Sunbeam Talbot 90 on Penang. One day we picked up two Norwegian (?) hitch-hikers. Soon after we were stopped by two Chinese policemen who didn't speak English. I think they were telling us that learners were not allowed to carry passengers. Whatever, Barbara threw a wobbly, after which their sign language seemed to indicate that they were happy for us to continue. Years later, she did the same to a UK police sergeant while stanfing in middle lane of M4. Sgt told me to "get my wife out of his sight and he would say no more about this". Seemed too good an offer to refuse. Oh yes, she had one professional lesson in UK, passed test first time in a car that she drove for first time on previous day. It snowed on January 1st 1970. I still wake up screaming.

602 PS Learners are not alowed to tow a trailer, but everybody already knew that.

 

[602]

Hi,

Does anyone know the rate of attrition for driving instructors?

602

 

[LMH]

Hi Damian

I'm sorry but it appears we don't hold data which is broken down into the areas you asked for.

Sad smiley thingy bob.

Lisa

 

[smiley]

Don't forget the driver to the side off the learners must have the correct full license for the vehicle being driven.

 

[Mikey1]

A learner driver is less of a risk than a driver who has just passed his test (1st year) and is on his own,this is the insurances companies view not mine.

 

[DelTrotter]

Took my lessons at 16 in the Army, civvie instructor and two or three students, we would drive for 30/45 mins then change around. Same principle when learning on HGV's, two students, one driving, one squashed up in the middle.