Supervisors - Be Aware! - Don't Fall Foul of the Laws That Govern Your Role

Link to Drive Hart https://linktr.ee/drivehart

This Podcast provides an overview of the Supervising Drivers Role; the podcast is delivered by Julia Clayton, who is a retired Assistant Chief Constable (police), Director of Drive Hart (Government Approved Instructor Training Company) and qualified Grade A Instructor with some 30 years experience of law (criminal and civil).  

The podcast looks at the legal aspects of your supervision role, outlining the rules and responsibilities involved in the  role and provides some practical advice on what to do and advice to seek before setting off to conduct private practice with a learner driver. 

Key pointers:

• Ensure you understand what your role requires you to do - you need to be active not passive in ensuring driving practice is kept safe.

• Check your/learners insurance cover properly.  Ensure it fully covers the learner and you for practice driving.  Some insurance companies are putting additional requirements on supervision of learners (eg increasing the age of the supervisor is just one)  so speak to them, don't just assume it will cover you or the learner - check!   

• Ask whether the insurance cover in place also provides for funding for  legal cover should the learner or your actions as supervisor be subject to criminal or civil proceedings and costs.   Do not underestimate how important this can be, civil  cases where compensation/damages are being sought can be very costly.

• Ensure you vehicle is fully legal, tax, insurance, MOT and display L Plates as required when taking a learner out.

• Speak with your Approved Driving Instructor on when to start private practice and what subjects to cover, where and when - the principle:  practice was has been taught by the Approved Driving Instructor where possible. 

• Understand that the law expects you to be active in your role, ensuring practice is kept safe (for you and all other road users), if you are found not to have given instruction or made an intervention in the event of an accident, you may find yourself liable for criminal or civil proceedings as well as the learner driver. 

• The standard expected of a learner driver is that of a competent experienced driver, if they fall below that standard, as supervisor you are expected to keep practice safe and may be asked to account for what you did or did not do to rectify careless or dangerous driving by the learner  in the event of proceedings. 

• There is a wealth of case law which underpins these points, before you set off supervising driving practice we recommend taking advice from an approved Driving Instructor and where possible to work in conjunction with an ADI so that you practice what has already been taught by the professional.   

For further information and support for Parents and Supervising Drivers see our facebook page and our public facebook groups for parents and those who want to become instructors, links below: 

 "Parents - Teaching a Learner To Drive"
https://www.facebook.com/groups/524645638669371

national Standards referred to in the podcast can be found on:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/car-and-small-van-driving-syllabus

"Driving Instructor Training - Information and Advice"
https://www.facebook.com/groups/931188437661404


A link to our Drive Hart facebook page is provided below, which provides regular u

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