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Are there any officially recognised driving qualifications out there apart from the regular test , and the IAM test???

If so, what are they and how much are they likely to cost and do thye help wit insurance etc????
Cheers,
C

Jen

There's the ROSPA ones...sorry, don't know much about them but were recommended to me by the guy who taught me on my defensive driving course...might be used in a search on google?

Alternatively - contact your council Road Saftey team, they'll have loads of info about ones in your area...

Jen

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Cheers

Anyone else know of any??????

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*bump*

boomer

There are various qualifications (and licences) associated with motor racing, but whether that will benefit you on the road (e.g. for insurance purposes) i doubt it

Sometimes the Police will put on advanced driver training courses, and there are various companies that also do this (both on and off the road) but you probably won't get an officially recognised certificate for it.

mb

jonny_Mc

I will b the 1st person in thw WORLD !!!!! (*** on ) to do an RAC test in the next few weeks , it's been organised by my insurance (nowrich union) coz i want a P1 or 22B (originally i wanted an Sti) and im only 19 . The thing is allthough i can pay the premium , thay r v dubious about letting me loose in 1 (dont know y , as i hold all other licence including an RACMSA int A racing licence , i race in the V6 Clio Chall) . Will give u more info . Is going to cost me £350 4 12h 1 on 1 tuition !

AndyC_772

iTrader: (2)

I think the IAM test is the only one that's recognised by insurers. Even then only some insurers give you any credit for it, and it's not much of a discount. The discount is far from matching the statistical reduction in the number of accidents that IAM-trained drivers have compared to others.

However, if the training reduces your chances of being involved in an accident over the next few years, not only could it keep you alive but it could also improve your chances of building up a good NCB and insurance history.

It's well worthwhile getting in touch with your local branch and asking one of the local members to go out on a few 'observed drives' with you. They have a lot to teach that's never covered in the original L-test. I'm sure their training has saved my car from a few knocks and kept a man (and his dog, who should also have known better than to walk out in front of my car doing 50mph) alive.

Why not ask your insurance company what, if any, qualifications they recognise?

Andy.

carl

I believe that John Lyons's HPC is recognized by insurers, too.

IanA

The other advantage to the IAM is that it only costs £70. You get as many sessions as you and the observer think you need and the test for that. On average it takes around six sessions for a competent driver to reach test standard. I found it absolutely no help for insurance at all (although the IAM have an arrangement with a broker that works out well for older drivers, they offered me a quote with Norwich Union Direct that was double my current cost and I'd rather drive a tractor than insure with NUD)

With Rospa I think you have to maintain your standard, ie be re-tested on a regular basis. I'm about to look into doing it so can post with more details.

plug

I did the IAM test and it was well worth it, I did find though that the companies affering a discount where high priced anyway. Depending on the club you join it can be open ended or what used to be known as STEAM, (Short Term Enrolment Advanced Motorist) which means that they try to get you through in a set number of lessons. What we found when I was going through my course (which was an open ended one), was that a lot of the STEAM members abilities didn't last very long after they passed the test and soon dropped out of the club instead of going on to be "observers" for other associates.
In this particular club some of us more enthusiastic drivers where offered the opportunity of going on to do what was known as the Merit test which in effect was the Police Advanced driving test with a few obvious techniques taken out. During the long 2 to 4 hour lessons (driving and observing) it was common practice to use the ability of the car to the highest level possible given the road, traffic and weather conditions, this was with 3 other people in the car shouting at you, some of them serving traffic officers, telling you every little mistake you made down to whether you had checked your mirrors before and after each gear change. Commentary was compulsary and the actual Merit test was 1 1/2 to 2 hours of pure concentration, there was also a written test which required a knowledge of Roadcraft (the police drivers manual) to a word perfect level, 4 out the the 12 who started dropped out of the course.
You where given a percentage mark after the test which could be graded as a class 1 or class 2 or a fail in terms of a police qualification.
Unfortunately the acheivement was only recognised within the IAM to the extent that Ted Clements the IAM Cheif Observer at the time coming to the club to present us with our certificates. I now have the utmost respect for the advanced trained police drivers and cringe when I see a police driver do something stupid. I would reccomend anybody to seek out this type of very advanced course for it's own rewards.
In terms of concentration being applied and difficulty for the different tests I would grade the standard test as 1%, the IAM test as 10% and the Police adavanced driving test as 100%.
These are my experiences and I am sure that others have other experiences.

plug

P.S. did you know that police aren't supposed to rest their elbows on window frames, "it reduces efficiency and looks slack" !