Try, fail and get a free critique: Dannevirke driving mentor says she has lost 75% of her clients

A Dannevirke driving mentor says the number of people she took lessons for dropped by 75 per cent as soon as the Government allowed learner drivers to re-sit driving license tests.
free.

The free retest scheme, which learner drivers say has also increased waiting times for tests, is now under the microscope in Wellington.

Learner License Theory Tararua owner and operator Nikki Martin said learner drivers were retaking practical driving tests to avoid the cost of taking lessons.

Transport Minister Simeon Brown said this week he is talking to New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi and the Ministry of Transport to address the issue, which he said could include the reintroduction of repeat fares.

He said the continued delays in testing have been unacceptable.

In October, the rules changed to mean drivers only had to pay an application fee and change, rebooking and canceling tests became free.

The NZTA said this week that most regions have improved over the year, but it expects to continue to see high demand for practical testing.

Mr Martin said the waiting list for a lesson on Tararua’s learner’s license theory was now just one week, well down on October last year.

She believed that due to the financial situation of many Tararua families, the cheapest option was to continue booking a practical test, fail it and receive a free critique, rather than take lessons to improve driving skills before the test.

“I lost three-quarters of my clientele overnight.

“Our failure rate is around 60 per cent in Dannevirke alone, and you can imagine how expensive it is for families and individuals to keep coming back and doing it with repeat fees.”

Martin said she was focused on helping the students pass the test, but also taught them about the vehicle itself, including how to keep it roadworthy and check the tires.

He said people in rural communities faced many obstacles with lessons due to proximity to an urban area and said illiteracy and language barriers were also a factor.

“I had a student, his parents live 40 kilometers from the city and that is why he drives very well on rural roads. But take it to the city, where it is important for testing, and I had no idea.”

Martin had four driving lessons available in May and encouraged students to take lessons behind the wheel before booking a practical test.

Meanwhile, a Hawke’s Bay woman says long wait times for tests are part of the reason she still has a learner’s licence.

As of 9am on 3 May, there were 14 test dates available at VTNZ test stations in Napier, seven dates in Hastings, 11 dates in Dannevirke and four dates available in Central Hawke’s Bay and Wairoa over the next four months: the only places to sit a practical test.

Learner driver Tegan Jaggard, 21, doesn’t want to continue with the L license plate she’s had for years, but she just renewed her learner’s license to give herself time to take lessons so she can “do it right the first time.”

She got her learner’s license when she turned 16 and now has to rely on her parents or friends to take her to work and social activities due to restrictions placed on learner drivers who must be supervised and display L plates.

“I’m regressing a lot to adolescence, I feel like I’ve lost a lot of independence.”

He had his first restricted driving test booked for April this year, but has made the decision to delay it until May and is even considering pushing back that date.

She almost got restrained when she was 17, but her plans to do so were put on hold due to lockdown and not being able to take driving lessons.

He said he faced a wait of at least two months between exams and that lessons were harder to get due to full-time work.

“When I go to book lessons and then can’t get them for weeks and weeks, it doesn’t work.”

Jaggard felt the system could be improved with more testing staff and a place for adults to take their restricted tests and not feel “embarrassed.”

AA head of driver training Roger Venn suggested students plan ahead to ensure they get a preferred time when booking driving lessons, which came with a two-week wait in Hawke’s Bay.

“We recommend that the student have practiced for at least 120 hours before attempting a practical license test.”

He said Hawke’s Bay today AA was “in the process of training an additional instructor and hopes to have them up and running soon in the Napier and Hastings area.”

Michaela Gower joined Hawke’s Bay today in 2023 and is based in the Hastings and Central Hawke’s Bay newsrooms. He covers Dannevirke and Hawke’s Bay news and loves sharing stories about farming and rural communities.