Roddy Graham’s Blog: 16 January 2008

Learning to drive

Good news and bad news in recent weeks.

First, the good news. I understand the Government is starting to get serious about driving standards and that in future it may well be virtually impossible to obtain a full driving licence before the age of 18. Apparently, there is serious talk in the corridors of Whitehall about making the driving test much tougher. Learner drivers would need to gain experience of night driving and motorway driving before entering the test.

I agree on both counts, although great care would need to be taken over allowing supervised learner drivers onto a motorway. Perhaps that could only be done with a trained instructor in the passenger seat and after so many hours behind the wheel. The time surely will have to come when only professionally-trained drivers will be allowed to sit the test and drivers will have had to have completed a minimum number of signed-off hours before being eligible for a full licence – a bit like a light aircraft licence where pilots are required to have flown a minimum 40 hours before qualifying.

Second, the bad news. It would appear that many drivers responsible for the maintenance of their own cars, as many as a third of cash-for-car and private car drivers are failing to have proper safety and routine maintenance work carried out. Apparently, for the former, the temptation lies in opting for a prestige car with a non-maintenance contract over a run-of-the-mill car with full maintenance support. The crunch comes when tyres or brake discs have to be replaced, with an unanticipated hefty hit on the personal wallet.

The findings are worrying on three fronts – for the drivers themselves, other road users who may become involved in the resulting accident and employers for whom those same drivers may be driving while at work. In the absence of a robust and regular driver licence, service and MOT checking system, it’s yet another argument for the return to company cars and the use of rental or pool vehicles for non-company car drivers who are required to drive while on company business.