We offer specialist advanced and defensive driver training for fully qualified LGV/HGV drivers covering C1, C, C1+E and C+E entitlements across the UK.  More companies are becoming aware of the need to increase the driving standards of HGV drivers and to demonstrate their duty of care.

Our advanced courses for qualified HGV drivers are designed to take their current level of driving and raise it to a higher level, that helps reduce their occupational road risk, and become safer, more observant, fuel efficient advanced drivers.

HGV Course Format:

We offer a half (3.5hr) or full (7hr) session for qualified LGV/HGV drivers wanting to take advanced/defensive driver training. All training takes place in your own HGV. After the initial introductions and licence checks, there will be some initial safety checks. Assuming all is ok, then the driver will be asked to drive in a way they usually do with no input from the tutor. This allows the tutor to see the level of driving they are up to. This initial drive usually lasts for 20-30 minutes, sometimes a little longer.

After the initial drive, there is an open, two way discussion, where our instructor gives feedback on how the driver performed on the initial drive – fundamentally what they are like as a driver – both strengths and weaknesses. This forms the basis for the training element.

The main training element focuses on lowering the road risk of the driver, if we found on the initial drive that the driver has an issue with speed for example, we will ensure more time is dedicated to speed awareness. If another driver is having issues with judgement and maneuvers – again the course will be adjusted to help develop a drivers spacial awareness and so on. Our courses for LGV/HGV drivers are designed to be customised to the needs and requirements of the driver.

At the end of the course, there will be a debrief, which will recap the day and hints and tips for the future. A full report, which measures a driver in over 20 elements will be emailed to you. The report indicates the overall road risk of the driver – which is either High, Medium or Low risk.

Our Tutors:

Our tutors delivering LGV/HGV training have the entitlement (either C1, C, C1+E or C+E), which matches the vehicle they are training in. Furthermore they are all highly experienced in delivering advanced and defensive driver training in LGV/HGV vehicles, and are registered with the DVSA (Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency).

Many tutors are also highly experienced ADI’s (Approved Driving Instructors) who, in addition to LGV/HGV training, also deliver advanced driver training for car drivers. We ensure all our tutors have a passion for advanced driving and road safety.

Course Content:

* Forward planning and observation
* Maneuvers (Including safe reversing)
* Advanced vehicle control
* Fuel efficient driving
* Rules of the road
* Creating a positive attitude
* Speed awareness
* Loading and load awareness
* Dealing with stress and driving
* Dealing with adverse weather

Please use the contact form on the upper right of this page to get in touch. We cover most of the UK and can come to you for the training. Should you be in a location where we have to draft tutors in from other parts of the UK (100 + miles), which is often the case for more remote areas (Scotland and far South East) we require an extra £30 per 3.5hr session/£60 per 7hr session, so in this instance, a full day would be £430+VAT. The additional cost is to cover travel and hotel for the tutors.

We offer driving risk assessments in all areas of the UK. Our driving risk assessments are designed for companies that want to take the first step in demonstrating their Duty of Care in relation to risk management.

Below is an outline of our on-road risk assessments. If you are looking for an online risk assessment please visit DORA – www.advanced-driving.co.uk/dora/ 
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Our Driving Risk Assessments – Key Facts:

• Road Based Sessions – All assessments are road based, delivered by DVSA (Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency) registered ADIs, who are experts in risk assessments and advanced driver training
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• We Come To You – We can conveniently start and finish a driver risk assessment from your office or any location of your choice around the UK
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• 60/90 Minute Duration – Our risk assessments are 60 minutes for 6 drivers in a day, or 90 minutes for just one driver
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• Emailing of Assessment – Once a risk assessment is complete there will be a short debrief before our tutors complete the risk assessment form. We will then email you the report for each driver around 2-3 days after the assessment.

How We Risk Assess Drivers:

Our driving risk assessments measure a driver in 21 key driving areas on one of our bespoke assessment reports (example below). We mark them either low, medium or high risk in each of these areas, along with a written part, which allows our tutor to go into further detail about the driver. Each driver will then be given an overall score, either low, medium or high risk.

View an example driver risk assessment here 

Should you wish to discuss your driver risk assessment options please email us using the contact form on the upper right of this page, or call us.

Prices:

We can assess 6 drivers in a day (60 mins each) for just £340 + vat, which works out at just £56.66 + vat a driver. We can train up to 50 drivers a day, at multiple locations if required. For training just one driver it is £150 + vat for a 90 min session. We can be flexible to your needs if you have a set idea that you want to consider.

6 Delegates in a day would be based on the following format:

9am – 10am – Session 1     12:30 – 13:30 – Session 4
10:10 – 11:10 – Session 2    14:00 – 15:00 – Session 5
11:20 – 12:20 – Session 3   15:10 – 16:10 – Session 6

Life After Risk Assessments….

Many companies use driving risk assessments to filter out those drivers, that maybe require additional training. Usually companies that identify drivers as medium or high risk opt for additional on-road training. We can assist you should you want on-road advanced/defensive driver training following risk assessments. We have over 200 fleet registered advanced driving tutors around the UK.

Should you wish to discuss your driver risk assessment options please email us using the contact form on the upper right of this page, or call us.

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We offer bespoke advanced/defensive van driver training nationwide. For drivers of all levels of skill and experience.

We help make safer, happier van drivers – across the UK. This course is ideal for:

1. Drivers who have recently started a job driving a van and have little or no experience in driving such a vehicle.
2. Drivers that drive a van as part of their job but have been having a few too many incidents.
3. Companies that wish to train a number of their van drivers to help lower fleet insurance, demonstrate their Duty of Care, and reduce incident rates.

For Motorhome driver training, please click here.
For Horsebox driver training, please click here.

Van Driver Training Course Content:

1. Forward planning and observation
2. Speed awareness
3. Driving courtesy and  manners
4. Rules of the road
5. Van Maneuvers (Right and Left reverse + reversing)
6. Advanced mirror use 
7. Cornering techniques
8. Skid control techniques
9. All-weather driving
10. Vehicle handling with loads
11. Space management and awareness
12. Motorway, Town and Rural driving techniques
13. Any other bespoke elements you wish to focus more on
    

We do offer a bespoke vehicle familiarisation course if you’re specifically looking at a course for a driver new to van driving. More info.
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We can provide van driver training in both small and large vans and other LCVs up to 3.5 tonnes (that can be used on a normal “B” car driving licence). We can also provide training for larger Category C and C1 commercial vehicles. If you’re looking for driver training for delivery drivers, please click here.

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Recent client case studies:

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Take an in-depth look at what elements are covered – more info

Two Common Vans We Provide Training In (Our training takes place in your own van):

• Mercedes Sprinter – This is one of the most common vans we provide driver training in. The Mercedes Sprinter comes in a range of sizes and dimensions. Our tutors have many years of experience in delivering van driver training in such vehicles. Learn more about our bespoke Transit Driver Training.

• Ford Transit/Luton – Perhaps the most well-known of all vans. The Ford Transit has been synonyms with “The White Van Man”. Our tutors have helped many “White Man Van” drivers become safer, more courteous drivers.

We can provide van driver training in all vans, car-derived vans and LGV vehicles. With our van driver training, we do focus more on manoeuvres and mirror use, as this is essential when driving such a large vehicle with limited rear vision.

Learn more about what “bespoke” driver training means. Following the course, each driver will get a full driving report outlining what was covered and their overall risk.
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Don’t have a van? We don’t supply vans for training. However, if you would like a session and need a van, we would recommend hiring a van local to yourself, and training can then be arranged to start from the van hire depot. A number of customers who needed van training but did not have access to a van opted for this.
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Quote & Course Duration:

We can provide a full day (7hrs) and a half day (3.5hrs) across the UK. You have the option of booking a session online here. Alternatively, you can talk to us beforehand with any questions you may have.

Our tutors are highly experienced in delivering van driver training. Since 2011, we have provided van driver training for over 1,000 companies around the UK. Please use the contact form on the upper right of this page, and a member of our team will be able to confirm a quote based on the numbers you are looking to train. We can train as few as one driver or as many as 100+

We have over 200 tutors all over the UK and can come to your office to start the training. We offer van driver training all over the UK, including all major towns and cities, including London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Nottingham and many more.

In 2012 there were over 1,100 people were seriously injured when a driver was over the prescribed UK drink drive limit. More sadly 280 people were killed in drink drive road traffic accidents. Drink driving has decreased greatly over the last 30 years. This is mainly down to education – however, there is still room for improvement.

UK Drink Drive Limit:

Drink Drive Limit in the UK is 80 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. This is know as the BAC (Blood Alcohol Level). An alternative measurement is 107 milligrammes per 100millilitres of urine.

In Scotland the drink drive limit is lower, at just 50 milligrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood. This lower Scottish limit came into effect on 4th December 2014 as an attempt to lower the accident rate of alcohol related drink drive road traffic collisions.

How To Stay Safe – And Under The Limit:

The simple answer is not drink at all when driving. However, the current limit in both England and Scotland allows you to consume a level of alcohol. Your BAC (Blood Alcohol Level) will be determined by a number of elements including:

1. Your body weight
2. If you are a male or female. Men tend to process alcohol more quickly
3. Your metabolic rate – the faster your metabolic rate will usually mean you process alcohol quicker
4. Your current stress levels. If you are stressed it may take longer for you to process alcohol
5. If you have recently eaten. Drinking on an empty stomach will have a more dramatic effect than drinking after or with a meal
6. Your age. Younger drivers tend to process alcohol alcohol slightly slower than older drivers

A large man who has had a meal would be able to drink more, and possibly still be under than drink drive limit than a smaller woman drinking the same amount. It is hard to accurately access how much you have had, and if you are under the drink drive limit. So to avoid the risk take these following steps if you are driving to a social event or party:

1. Tell people before the event that you are driving
2. Ensure you will be able to access alcohol free drinks
3. Make a promise to yourself not to drink, or if you do limit yourself to very little
4. Remind those who are drinking, that you want to remain safe! They will certainly rely on you if you are giving them a lift after

Below is a calculator that can help you see what you could possibly drink and be above/below the drink drive limit. This is only an estimate and certainly should not be taken as an accurate measure.