We’ve just seen this excellent infographic from Confused.com and Red Driving School about the difficulty learner drivers have with deciphering the UK’s different road signs. It also contains some useful tips on how to identify the purpose of signs using colours and shapes. Enjoy!
Brought to you by Confused.com and RED Driving School
If you’re a professional driving instructor, currently training to become an ADI or looking to become a driving instructor then you may be interested in a new blog we launched, The Professional ADI.
We launched it to specifically address some of the information gaps that our users have identified and as such there will be plenty of posts that will help you become an even better driving instructor and help you grow your business.
Please come over to visit us, have a read and leave a comment.
New promotional poster available for ADIs
We’re pleased to announce that we have a new customisable poster available for you to download. If you are an ADI using Theory Test Pro, you can customise the poster, print it out and use it to promote your driving services.
You can download the poster here: Theory Test Pro Promo Poster
Hold your tongue
Hold on to your tongues, the Government is proposing to remove foreign language support for those taking the driving theory or practical tests.
In a consultation, the Driving Standards Agency has said that it would like to completely abolish foreign language support, since it costs the Agency some £25 million a year to maintain the 19 foreign-language voiceovers, and provide interpreters, and the DSA is not legally obliged to provide language assistance, only to provide tests in English and Welsh, and voiceovers for those with dyslexia or other reading difficulties.
Read more…
Take the winter theory test!
Getting up in the dark. Scraping ice off the car. Listening intently to the weather forecast. Hoping the grit doesn’t ruin the paintwork. Yes – the British winter has rolled around again.
But while moaning about the weather is something we can all do, driving safely in adverse conditions can be a tricky business.
That’s why we’ve pulled together a short, ADI-level quiz that’ll test your knowledge of winter driving theory. To ensure it’s a stern test all the questions have been taken from the most recent DSA update to the ADI question bank.
And, since this an ADI-level quiz, we’ve set the bar high – you’ll need to get 90% or more correct to convince us that you’re a winter Theory Test Pro. Reckon you’ve got what it takes?
How to complain to Google about scam booking websites
We’ve been campaigning to get rid of scam theory test booking sites for a while now, but Google have not been terribly responsive to our complaints.
However, speaking on a recent episode of Watchdog Daily, Google admitted that at least one of the sites we’ve been complaining about does in fact break its advertising rules, and has agreed to remove the site. So complaints do work! You can help keep up the pressure on Google by submitting your own complaint.
Complaining to Google can be a bit tricky, so we’ve created this guide to help you through the process.
1. Right click this link and select ‘open in new window’.
2. Enter your email address, and select ‘Landing page/site where you end up after clicking on the ad’ and then select ‘a text or image ad’. It should look like the image on the right.
3. Click ‘Continue’
4. Open a new tab or window in your browser. Use Google to search for ‘Book theory test’
5. Right click the first advert’s link and select select one of the following, based on your browser: Copy Shortcut (Internet Explorer); Copy Link Location (Firefox); Copy Link (Safari); Copy Link Address (Chrome).
6. Paste that into the first box.
7. Paste the following text into the second box.
They do not accurately represent the added value that they’re charging for.
They do not clearly and prominently state their affiliation/non-affiliation with the government or official body.
They do not clearly mention that the original service is available for a charge.
They do not provide a working link to the official source with equal prominence at the point of entry to the service.
8. Click ‘Submit’.
That’s it – we’re done. If you’d like to complain about more than one website, just repeat the steps and select a different ad in step 5.
What can a fighter pilot teach us about driving?
You might wonder what flying a jet has in common with driving a car. Well, during both you’re being bombarded with information about potential hazards. You may think your eyes are simply windows that perfectly transmit all the visual data about the world, but that’s far from the truth…
When you move your head and eyes to scan a scene… …you see the image in a series of very quick jumps (called saccades) with very short pauses (called fixations) and it is only during the pauses that an image is processed.
This might sound crazy, but your brain actually blocks the image that is being received while your eyes are moving. This is why you do not see the sort of blurred image, that you see when you look sideways out of a train window.
To find out more about how your driving is affected, including some simple tests to demonstrate just how much your eyes aren’t telling you, click here to read the full article.
If at first you don’t succeed…
Reports have emerged of a woman who has sadly failed her theory test a staggering 105 times, costing her an estimated £3,000.
The details appeared when the DSA released a list of ‘most theory test attempts’ by individuals. She has topped the list for the last few years. Second place goes to a gentleman with 84 attempts. Wow – that is dedication!
This raises the question: Are there some people who just can’t pass the theory test?
We’re certainly of the opinion that anyone should be able to pass the theory test, given sufficient training, and we hate to think of these poor people wasting any more money.
So here’s our offer: If anyone knows the either of these individuals (or their instructors), get in touch with us! We’d like to offer them a free subscription to Theory Test Pro. We’ve always enjoyed a challenge…
Do you think there are some people who just can’t be taught?
Looking good?
The Driving Standards Agency has released the first video showing what the new computer-generated hazard perception clips will look like.
For those who saw the two test clips released a couple of months ago, this new clip should be a pleasant surprise. Gone are the blocky cars and a white sky, in come realistic lighting, physics and even a bit of motion blur.
We think it’s a lot more convincing than the previous tests – what do you think?
HGV students left stranded
We were saddened to hear that two HGV training schools – HGV Training Academy and HGV Training Limited – have dropped off the radar, apparently taking their students’ money with them. As you may have noticed, we take a dim view of companies who treat their customers badly.
What has this got to do with Theory Test Pro? Both companies paid to use our online theory test system, and between them had around 100 students registered with us. We’ve suspended both companies’ accounts with us until things are cleared up.
According to internet reports some of these companies’ students have paid around £900 or more for HGV training they’ve never received. Although we’ve suspended the HGV schools’ accounts, their students are innocent victims in all of this. It would be sad for them to lose their access to Theory Test Pro, so we’ve given each of their students that are registered with us a year’s free pass to use Theory Test Pro. It’s the least we can do.
We wish anyone who has potentially lost money with HGV Training Academy and HGV Training Limited all the best in getting it back.
Gareth & the Theory Test Pro team
P.S. If you’re thinking about getting yourself trained as an HGV driver, make sure you read this guide on how to avoid being scammed.
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