chickencam Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 A proud Mum moment She took her test yesterday at 1.40pm so I expected to hear by 2.50pm or so how she had got on, she kept me waiting until 3.20pm because her instructer dropped her back home, she then got a bus into town and came into the office to tell me in person. I nearly fell apart with nerves, after being wound up all morning too. There was lots of hugging and laughing but amazingly no tears She is 18 a week on Monday and is thrilled to have passed whilst she is still 17. Now comes the expensive part, I am off to call the insurance company in a minute Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WitchHazel Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Congratulations to your daughter, what a great achievement! Hope the insurance quotes aren't even more shocking than you expect... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubereglu Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 That's good to hear! Well Done to her! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Well done to her! I love the freedom being able to drive gives you, have been all over the country with my friends Also good to be able to taxi parents around, although the first few times feels wierd + too grown up! Ask the insurance company about PassPlus ... they normally reduce the quote if you've done it so that might be something to think about for her. If anything I think they have to reduce it to at least the cost of the course, so effectively its free. I did it, mainly for the motorway practice but was nice to be able to drive with a bit less pressure after you've passed ... have driven 7,000 miles this summer, couple hours on the motorway each day, so am glad I did! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LolaLayla Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Good news indeed. Those driving lessons are really expensive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickencam Posted September 16, 2011 Author Share Posted September 16, 2011 She has been paying £22 per lesson and has had about 40 lessons, we also paid back in February to put her onto my insurance. We have an Admiral Multicar policy and she is the policy holder on my car whcih means that she has already been earning no claims. We will need to pay and extra £117 from today until renewal in February for that car which has made the total insurance for the year £983, about £650 more than it would have been for my insurance without her, no idea what it will be next year. We won't do the same thing when our son comes to drive in about 18 months because we came to the conclusion that we were teaching her incorrectly, the test has changed so much in recent years and also my car was so different from the lovely modern Mini that she was driving in lessons it wasn't helping.Besides which it was way too stressful sitting in the passenger seat with no dual controls with our child at the wheel of the car When DS and YD learn to drive we will leave it to the professionals and use the money which we would have spent on insurance for their lessons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LolaLayla Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 YS has had 3 lessons (£20 each) but I am not going to take him out until I feel he has some idea of what he is doing. He informed me that he accidentally ended up trying to drive on the wrong side of the road I took my older two out (they passed first time) and although I did shout brake, brake, BRAKE a lot I think they did have some basic road understanding. All three attended cycling proficiency training but YS must have been thinking of something else at the time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGirlsMum Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Congratulations, there is no way on this earth I will ever sit next to my girls before they pass their tests, too stressful for all concerned. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickencam Posted September 16, 2011 Author Share Posted September 16, 2011 From the comparison sites it looks like if she had a small car of her own it would cost about £1,200 - £1,400 for her to insure it going down by about £200 when she has 1 years no claims. we will probably pay £345 extra until February so that she can drive 2 of our 3 cars then review it from there. Now I just have to persuade my hubby to let her drive that is going to be the hardest part of all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LolaLayla Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 At first, when ours passed, they were not allowed to take others with them if they went to the next large town as we were concerned that their concentration would be affected. Locally we let them but on the understanding the car was not full and music was not on. Gradually as they became more experienced they drove everywhere with everyone YS says at school as soon as someone can drive they fill the car with pals and go off to McDonalds at lunchtimes However one pupil who recently passed got 3 points and a fine for speeding Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Congratulations to your ED I'd hate to take my driving test again. I used to take both my DD and ES out in my car, it was quiet nerve wracking and definitely put me off the idea of becoming a driving instructor! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickvic Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Congrats to your daughter My DD pointed out she'd nearly 14 and will be driving in 3 years time She will get taught by a professional cos I think we'd have far too many moments I'll give everyone in the area plenty of warning before she starts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keyhole kate Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 Well done big congrats to your daughter My YD 18 has her test coming up soon I take her out in her VW Lupo to practise all the time I did the same with DS too both had road sense from having done 2 years on scooters. Insurance £1,300 with Direct line Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pips_pekins Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 What great news. My son is 17 in a few months but doesn't seem too bothered about learning to drive at the moment. Looking at the cost of lessons let alone insurance, I'm quite relieved. YS says at school as soon as someone can drive they fill the car with pals and go off to McDonalds at lunchtimes Yep, seems to be the same at this school Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lewis Posted September 16, 2011 Share Posted September 16, 2011 I wasn't bothered about driving for a good 6 months and then decided I wanted to learn, regret not learning sooner now! Think its a good life skill to have, even if you have no car to drive afterwards, I didn't know I'd be able to get insured on my parents cars until after I'd passed my test Some friends haven't learnt so will be 21/22 after Uni and so in even more debt, before they start learning! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickencam Posted September 17, 2011 Author Share Posted September 17, 2011 I think that is important to learn to drive when you are young and adaptable. I have had a long talk with OH this evening hence the late posting and he seems happy for her to drive my car which is 7 years old and lost most of it's value, whether he still is by the morning remains to be seen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pips_pekins Posted September 17, 2011 Share Posted September 17, 2011 That's great chickencam. She is very lucky to have such supportive parents. I think my son will get more interested as he gets nearer to being 17. His birthday is not until April and his friendship group are all around that time or later so I think with starting A levels and all his other interests he hasn't given it much thought. There is still plenty of time yet I wasn't bothered about driving for a good 6 months and then decided I wanted to learn, regret not learning sooner now! Think its a good life skill to have, even if you have no car to drive afterwards, I didn't know I'd be able to get insured on my parents cars until after I'd passed my test Some friends haven't learnt so will be 21/22 after Uni and so in even more debt, before they start learning! That's a good point. With the pressure of student debt, things are quite different now from when I was at uni. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted September 17, 2011 Share Posted September 17, 2011 Well done to your DD ES passed first time too. We taught him as weren't impressed with our instructor or feedback on others locally. His just took him for long drives on straight roads He bought a car and we taught him and he took his test in that. I wanted him to be familiar with his car and driving all of his regular journeys. So, he did all of the driving for the family during the week. We made sure everyone was silent in the car at the beginning and then slowly let people chat. It meant that he was used to distraction, the weight of a full car etc etc before he was set free on the roads by himself. That said, I wouldn't allow him to take his brother and sister out for a week after he passed his test, just so that he could feel comfortable on his own. My worry now is him getting into a car with a 'friend' of his that took his test 4 times before passing and is a boy racer The other thing worth having a conversation with new drivers about is to point out that they should not drive the morning after drinking at a party or thinking of snoozing in a car after a drink - 2 things that many long standing drivers don't think about until they get caught out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LolaLayla Posted September 17, 2011 Share Posted September 17, 2011 I agree with Chucky Mama, it is really worrying when their peers pass too and want to drive them about. You feel you have some control over your own child, and have set down rules but you are never sure about the other driver (or the safety level of the car they are in). My children were old for their school year so were among the first to start driving and pass which made me feel happier. My older two both passed aged 17 which was great as it was all over and done with before further education. Some of DD's friends started but went away to uni and 3 years later still have not got a license. One in particular will need one for the job she will take up so will have to cram learning into a short space of time. Another benefit of starting young is that when opportunities arise later they can drive confidently e.g. getting chance to drive in foreign country. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
