More than 10 people are complaining to the Road Safety Authority (RSA) about driving lessons each month with one person writing of having their steering wheel grabbed three times, while another said their instructor had started praying in the passenger seat just before their lesson began.
In a lengthy complaint, one person wrote about the “very negative” learning environment they had dealt with, saying the thing they most remembered from their lesson was the word “fail”.
A copy of the complaint said: “I done [sic] nothing right and received not one word of encouragement at any stage. Condescending remarks were made, for example, about female learners looking into a particular mirror.”
The learner said there had been a “constant non-stop narration” about all the reasons why they would not pass their driving test.
“At least three times the [instructor] grabbed the steering wheel off me, this was in no way acceptable or appropriate. Furthermore, he was huffing and puffing and muttering under his breath, raising his arms,” they added.
Another reported a man they said was providing lessons even though he was not registered, saying he had a website up and running offering his services.
They wrote: “I am aware that this carries a €2,000 fine or a six-month prison sentence. If I don't get a response from you, I will have no choice but to escalate this to the gardaí.”
Another complained that their driving instructor had been praying in their car.
His consistent shouting was accompanied by complaints about Irish people.
Their report to the RSA said: “Furthermore, his behaviour included shouting and issuing threats, including the threat to drop me off at the side of the road.
“His consistent shouting was accompanied by complaints about Irish people. I believe such conduct is unprofessional.”
One learner wrote about getting “dirty looks” from their teacher after they stalled their car during a lesson.
A copy of their complaint said: “He made me feel as if I was sitting my driving test the whole time, and he kept checking his mobile phone throughout my lesson.
“He had made me feel pressured, and I lost my confidence in driving due to this. He would shout every time I made a mistake and acted as if I was supposed to know how to drive correctly straight away.”
Not all complaints were from learners with one driving instructor reporting the aggressive behaviour of a colleague who wanted them to move on from practising reversing a car.
They explained: “As I was walking back to the car [the other instructor] was still yelling, saying that it was courtesy to move on. Not only was he very unprofessional, he was very rude and aggressive towards me.
“It is challenging enough for my learner driver to learn how to drive but for her to feel intimidated like that was totally uncalled for.”
One bus driver also complained saying they had seen a learner car clearly breaking a red light, providing dashcam footage to support their claim.
They said: “After pointing out this dangerous behaviour, the instructor reacted in a highly unprofessional and aggressive manner – shouting, using vulgar words, and making an offensive gesture by raising his middle finger towards me.”
There were multiple complaints from residents griping about the fact that their neighbourhood was in frequent use for driving lessons.
'Near-misses'
One wrote about several “near-misses” with children on their road especially when a learner was practising their “reversing around the corner manoeuvre”.
The resident’s group said they fully understood that people needed to do lessons.
However, they asked the RSA: “Is there some compromise that could be reached whereby cars stayed away when children were likely to be playing?”
Another complained about cars going into “reverse around a blind corner” on their street.
They wrote: “I object to them doing this as it is so dangerous. Has something changed in the rule book which allows this practice?”
The RSA said they had received a total of 127 complaints over the past twelve months with 27 about inappropriate behaviour, 26 over money that was paid, and 18 about the testing route or driving lessons.
There were a further 29 logged about the quality of training, 7 about car hire for a driving test, and 20 about the failure to upload Essential Driver Training (EDT) lessons.
