Not many learner drivers pass their driving test with zero faults. BIG TOM has got a “Hall of Fame” of some of our pupils who have passed over the years with a completely clean sheet, but if you were to consider it from a UK perspective it will be a very low percentage. This short story here talks about how Jess recently passed with zero faults.
She got in touch with BIG TOM back in May to purchase the Beginners intensive course. Her plan was to intersperse her training with BIG TOM with practice in her own car with Mum supervising her driving.
BIG TOM Admin then started to provide the resources that we give all pupils prior to the in-car driving training, the level of support is extremely high and we know from experience that when pupils engage at this stage, it does create successful outcomes. We passed on to Jess no less than 47 emails over her time with us. This level of support is by no means unusual.
We immediately booked her up a theory test in July which she passed, and then we made a provisional practical test booking for her in November in Grantham. Her driving training with BIG TOM was set up between 13/8/24-28/8/24.
Jess then did the course and at the conclusion did 3 mock tests and although she did not pass them, no-one should under-estimate the value of undertaking very life-like, authentic mock tests – there are lots of benefits to be gained from them, not least, that the pupil starts to appreciate the standard required.
Jess then did a further 25 hours practice with an instructor and 4 hours practice in her car with her Mum.
The DVSA contacted her in November to say that they could not provide her with her test on the 13/11/24 as there was no examiner available, and gave her a new slot one week later on the 20/11/24. On that test, she passed with zero faults.
In summary, Jess purchased her course in May, passed the theory in July, engaged in the resources to prepare for her in-car training over two weeks in August. She then spent two months further boosting her practice before passing her driving test in November.
The average person in the UK takes 45 hours with an instructor + 22 hours private practice and it takes on average 7 months to pass the driving test [Source: DVSA]. Jess did 70 hours with an instructor and 4 hours private practice, marginally over the average. From her in-car training starting on 13 August to passing her driving test on 20 November was just over 3 months, so she turned it all around in less than half the average time a person takes.
Jess has clearly achieved an extremely high standard of driving ability with her test result, and it should be noted that not everyone is going to be desiring or aiming to achieve a zero fault driving test. But, credit where it is due, she fully embraced the goal of achieving competence and confidence and, in the UK, one does only get formally trained once in their life (unless of course they take ‘advanced’ training later). It is a shame that car insurance companies don’t reward newly qualified drivers who achieve a zero-fault driving test as their ability will undoubtedly be higher. But more than that, often this comes down to peace of mind and knowing that one has done the best one can to train to the highest standards possible – often, it very much comes down to attitudes to learning.
