How do I know that you are an Official Driving Standards Agency (DSA) Approved training school?

All relevant documents confirming this are available for inspection upon request at our offices. A call to the Driving Standards Agency on Tel: 0115 901 2595 quoting our name will confirm this. Furthermore, a search for our name on the DSA’s official website: www.dsa.gov.uk will confirm this too.

What documents do I need before I book a training course?

You need to have a UK driving licence. This is a legal requirement. A motorcycle training school cannot issue a CBT certificate to a student who does not have a UK driving licence. The CBT certificate issued requires a UK driver number on it which is issued to you when you have a UK driving licence. A picture is shown below of the required documents. It consists of a paper counterpart and a photocard. Some individuals may only have the paper counterpart. In this case a passport is acceptable as a photo id.

If you turn up for your CBT without the appropriate documents, we cannot conduct the course for you and you will lose your entire CBT fee for the day. Unfortunately this is a strict legal requirement and no exceptions can be made.

I have a European driver’s licence. Can I book a CBT course?

You can book a CBT course but only after you have received a UK paper counterpart licence. Simply visit your local post office and tell them that you hold a European driver’s licence but need to apply for UK paper counterpart to go with your European photo licence. They will give you the necessary forms. In most cases, you will not need to surrender your European licence for this (i.e., European licences from most (but not all countries) allow you to do this without surrendering your European licence). Send the completed forms off to the DVLA (Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency) with the appropriate fee and you should have your UK paper counterpart licence within a couple of weeks.

Why do I have to pay for the CBT course in full at the time of booking?

We have only a limited number of spaces for CBT courses every weekend. Therefore, all the CBT slots get booked in advance. Once you have booked a CBT slot, we turn down all other enquires for that slot. If you fail to show up for a CBT course, we lose the ability to book that slot to another student. Once you book with us, you are required to pay in full for that day’s training. This is a strict requirement and no exceptions can be made.

I wear eyeglasses / contact lenses - will this be a problem?

We will do an eyesight test on the day of the CBT. If you usually wear vision aids to see clearly, you will need to have them on the day with you. We will ask you to read a standard car number plate from a distance of 20.5 meters (approximately 5 car lengths). If you cannot do this on the day of the CBT, then you cannot proceed any further with the CBT course. You will lose your fees for that day. Therefore, please make sure your eyesight is up to this level before you book the course and don’t forget to wear your eyeglasses/contact lenses!

What happens on the day of the CBT course?

The day starts with first checking your documents and registering your details. We will conduct an eyesight check. The instructor will spend approximately 30 minutes in the office teaching you about the different types of safety helmets, clothing etc. We then fit you out with the necessary clothing and you proceed to our off-road training area a few minutes walk away. You can leave all your belongings in our office which will be locked up but please keep your wallet with you so have some money with you for lunch.

All bikes will be ready for you at the off-road site. You will learn about the controls, basic maintenance checks followed by various exercises riding around the site taught by the instructor (e.g., controlled stopping, changing gear, slow riding, emergency stops, U-turns, simulated left and right turns, etc.). Once you have mastered the off-road exercises, the instructor will conduct a road briefing about the importance of the Highway Code (Please read: http://www.highwaycode.gov.uk ), radio protocol, etc. Once that is done you will proceed to ride out on the road for a minimum of 2 hours. This will give you a chance to implement the skills you will have learned earlier in the day.

Provided that you are able to perform all the CBT exercises to a satisfactory standard the instructor will issue you with a CBT certificate.

What time does the CBT course start / finish?

We start at 9:00am SHARP. If you are late, it is not fair to the other students who have arrived on time to wait for too long - and the training session will be commenced. Once the session has started you cannot join in the course and will lose your fees for the day.

The CBT normally finishes between 3:30pm and 6:00pm. The reason for this gap is that for the road ride the 4-student group is split into 2 groups. The first pair will go out on the road ride and will finish at approximately 3:30pm. During this time the other pair will take a break for a couple of hours. This pair will then finish at the later time.

How the students are grouped depends on their level of ability / skill set. The instructor will make this decision on the day after having seen you ride on the off-road area. We can make note of your preference if you want to finish early and go in the first group but we CANNOT guarantee this as any unexpected event in the day can upset the regular schedule. Please try not to make any evening time commitments on the day of your CBT course, as we cannot guarantee finish times.

What if I am unable to complete the CBT course?

The CBT course is designed for beginners. Everyone learns at a different rate however, and for some students a day may not be sufficient. A small percentage of students do not complete the CBT on the first attempt. Below are some guidelines to ensure this is minimised:

Please make sure you are able to ride a bicycle (a pushbike) proficiently before booking a CBT course. If you lack the basic balance on a bicycle, you are not going to be able to ride a much heavier motorised 2-wheeler.

If you are not an existing car driver in the UK, please make sure you get yourself a copy of the Highway Code and learn it before you book a CBT. There are a lot of things to learn about riding a motorcycle / scooter alone. Not knowing the road signs / rules when you go out on the road makes the amount of information that you have to take in quite overwhelming.

When you call to make a booking, the bookings staff will ask you questions about your past riding / driving experience. Please try and answer as accurately as possible as we can then book you with the most appropriate group of students who share a similar skill set for the training to progress smoothly.

All the CBT courses will have a maximum of 4 students to 1 instructor on the off-road site and a maximum of 2 students to 1 instructor when out on the road ride. Whilst every effort will be made by the instructor to get everyone up to the required standard, only a limited amount of time can be spent on a struggling student as it means everyone else gets held up. The day consists of a series of exercises. When the students successfully complete one set of exercises the instructor moves to another set of exercises, building on the skills learnt from the previous exercise. If a student cannot get past an exercise in a reasonable amount of time, the student will be asked to return on another day to receive more training. This is to prevent the entire group from being held up. Please note that this only occurs in a small percentage of students. Our instructors are patient and understand that beginners learn slowly.

If a student needs to return on another day for extra training, that student will be charged for the Company’s motorcycle hire and insurance for the additional day.

Can the CBT course be cancelled by the Company?

In rare cases, this can happen. If the road conditions are icy or it is very windy, we may decide to cancel training for that day in the interest of health and safety. However, due to the nature of weather, we may only know of this at the last minute. We will make every attempt to contact you using the mobile contact number you have supplied us to let you know of the cancellation.

Rain is NOT a reason for cancellation! Please do not assume that if it is raining, the course will be cancelled. Even the DSA do not cancel motorcycle practical tests if is going to be a wet day. You are supposed to learn the necessary skills of riding in the wet!

Our staff is only human! Sometimes, unexpected illness, family emergencies can mean the course may need to be aborted. Any problem with our off-road site on the day may also mean the course may have to be cancelled on the day after your arrival.

Please do not be disappointed if any of the above were ever to happen. These are rare occurrences. We understand that you have set aside time on the weekend and a cancellation can be frustrating. In the event that we cancel a course due to circumstances outside our control – you can carry forward your booking to another future date with us or you are entitled to a full refund of your course fees upon request.

Motorcycle Practical Exam - What happens on the day?

The practical test is booked first thing in the morning so you will not need to take the whole day off from work. At most you will need to take the morning off.

(1) You come to our offices in the morning early just before 7:15am and ride to the test centre with one of our instructors supervising you. This gives you a bit of practice in the morning prior to your test. After the exam you ride the motorcycle back to our offices along with the instructor. There may be another student with you on the test that day and you will ride to the test centre and back together, along with the instructor. You should be back at our office after the exam by 11:30am

Where will I be doing my Motorcycle Practical Exam?

The test centre that we most regularly use is the Pinner Test centre located at:

221 Tolcarne Drive
Pinner
Middlesex
HA5 2DZ

Pinner test center is approximately 13 miles drive / ride from our office and it takes around 40 minutes to get there.

It is always useful to familiarise yourself with the roads around the test centre. It gives you a bit more confidence in your ride. As part of the training we will take you for a ride in the neighbouring area but if you want to practice on your own then the routes below will be very helpful. These are example test routes. There is of course no guarantee that you will be taken on these precise routes but it is very likely that you will end up on a lot of these roads. (Please click on the below to download PDF documents - these documents have been taken from the DSA’s official website)

Petrel House Aerodrome Road
Hendon
London
NW9 5LW

Can I do my practical test on a scooter?

You may take your test on any scooter however if it is an automatic, just as with cars, you will be restricted to riding automatics upon passing your test. You will not be able to ride a bike with clutch / gears.

I currently have a full automatic bike licence, how do I get it converted to ride manual machines ?

You'll need to do another practical test on a manual machine. The full licence (with automatic restriction) will act as a provisional for you to ride a manual under the supervision of a DSA certified instructor, but all the normal learner restrictions will apply.

Can I use my own bike for the CBT course?

Yes, you can use your own bike for a CBT course booked with us provided that:

• The vehicle has L-plates displayed at the front and rear. These should be of the standard size - 14.6 cm x 14.6 cm. Trimmed ones are not acceptable. Self-adhesive L-plates are available at the office at a cost of £5 for a pair.
• The vehicle has a valid tax disc on display.
• If over 3 years old - the vehicle should have a valid MOT certificate (the original will be required for inspection).
• Valid insurance in the name of the rider (the original certificate of insurance will be required for inspection).
• The motorcycle has as at least 1mm of tread all around on both tyres.
• All indicators and brake lights work correctly.
• The vehicle is NOT a BMW C1 motorcycle.

If any of the above conditions are not met - you will not able to use your own bike for the CBT course and will lose your fee for the CBT course. The instructor will ask to examine each of the above on the day of training. All must be present and correct.

The DSA have banned the use of BMW C1 motorcycles for CBT and practical tests for several reasons. Please view the PDF document below.

What shall I wear on the day of my CBT / DAS training course?

If you don’t have your own motorcycling gear, we will supply you with safely helmets, gloves, hi-visibility vests, and waterproof / windproof trousers and jackets (These are NOT warm). So if it is a cold day - please wear lots of warm layers as you will be outside most of the day. In cold weather, your extremities (i.e., your toes and fingers) are the most vulnerable which you will use most for operating the motorcycle controls when riding. So please wear inner gloves and warm socks.

Avoid flimsy shoes / loose fitting trainers / shoes with long laces. These offer no protection and the laces can get tangled in the motorcycle foot controls.

Please do not turn up in shorts / skirts. You will not be allowed on the CBT course.

Do I have to do the Motorcycle Theory test? How do I prepare for it / book it?

If you want to pass your motorcycle practical test and throw away your L-plates, you need to have done your motorcycle theory test prior to this. Without this we cannot book a practical test for you. You can book the theory test via the DSA website - www.dsa.gov.uk. It currently costs £28.50. The test centre closest to our office is in Southwark.

For preparation, there are plenty of books / CD-ROMS available from most bookshops (or Amazon). Make sure you get the official DSA material and the one for motorcycles. CD-ROMs are preferable as they have a lot of sample video clips, which are very useful for preparing for the Hazard Perception part of the theory test.

What if the DSA cancels my practical test?

On rare occasions, when students turn up at the DSA Practical Test centre, they are informed that their practical test has been cancelled. This could be due to several reasons - weather, staff shortage, strike, etc.

The DSA may offer you an alternative test date when informing you of the cancellation. Please DO NOT accept any alternative date while you are there, as we cannot guarantee that our instructors will be available on that day to take you to the test centre and you risk losing your exam day fees for that day. Instead, ask them for a claim form. Using this you will be able to claim back all the training / exam fees + any transport costs that you incurred in getting to the test centre. We will supply you with any necessary receipts as supporting evidence for the fees that you paid for the exam.

Please NOTE that it is up to you to claim back the fees. Even if we booked the test for you, if the test gets cancelled, the matter is between you and the DSA. The DSA will NOT reimburse us.

Is there parking available at your office?

There is no off-street parking available at our offices.

We are located in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Zone F. Motorcycles / scooters can park in the residents’ car bays without any charge all day. For cars, it is Pay and Display, including Saturdays. However during certain hours in weekend afternoons and weekday evenings parking is restricted to residents only. On Sundays parking is free.

Earl’s Court Car park is just up the road from us and you can park there for a fee. More information here: http://www.eco.co.uk/visitors/parking/parkingfaqs/

However, please be aware that the offices are close to the Chelsea Football Stadium and Earl’s Court. If Chelsea is playing at home or there is an event going on at Earl’s Court Exhibition Centre, it may be difficult to find parking spots.

We suggest you leave the car at home as we are within 5-10 mins walk from three nearby tube stations - West Brompton, Fulham Broadway and Earl’s Court.

Shall I book myself onto the daytime training courses or the evening courses?

For those who can manage to find free time in the day (from work commitments) daytime training can be ideal. You will get approximately 5 hours of riding time during the day. The day can be quite tiring as riding a big bike for 5 hours especially while learning / concentrating can be exhausting but you do get a lot of riding time. However, the training days do not have to be consecutive but we strongly recommend that you keep all the training days close together without many gaps to maximise your learning.

Our evening courses tend to be quite popular, as you don’t need to take any time off work. Traffic will also be lighter. The training sessions begin at 6:30pm and run till 9:00pm. So you get a “half day”. This is ideal in the summer, as it is daylight until later in the day. The training here is more compressed and intense but you will still cover all elements of the syllabus to get you up to test standard. The evenings don’t have to be consecutive but again we strongly recommend that you keep the evenings all close together. We can schedule in your evenings in the week leading up to your practical exam.

We understand that when you arrive at our office for an evening training session, you may be tired from a hard day at work. We have tea / coffee / biscuits / fruits ready in the office. So tuck in and get your energy levels up for an enjoyable ride!

Students are sometimes concerned when they book evening training during the non-summer months about riding in the dark. When we train in the absence of daylight we are always riding in town / urban areas where there are plenty of streetlights whilst covering all the essentials of the syllabus. We do not take you out onto dark country lanes without any light.

How much will it cost to get my big bike licence?

This is not an easy one to answer, as we cannot give you a precise number. Based on the hundreds of students we have trained we can give you some averages on how much training you will required. Students learn at different rates and you may have prior riding experience. To get an idea of cost you need to factor in the following:

• Cost of CBT
• Cost of Theory Test (test fee + cost of training materials)
• Cost of Training (on average you will need 3 Days or 4 Evenings) especially if you can get some practice on your own by renting a 125 cc bike after your CBT for a few of days. We strongly recommend this.
• Cost of Practical Exam day

Please look up the current charges for the above in our training section / bike hire section to get an idea. You obviously do not have to do everything right away. In fact, we prefer that you spread it out over a period of time and do some riding on your own / hired bike after your CBT; this means you get more practice and more time for you to absorb all the information!

I have heard that the Motorcycle Practical test is going to change soon? Is this true?

This is true. A new practical motorcycle test will come into force in the second half of 2008, and in addition to the existing accompanied on-road element there will be an off-road test around cones - A Motorcycle Manoeuvring Circuit. This will allow the examiner to be sure that the candidate has a very high level of machine control before being allowed on the on-road element.

This new part of the test is designed to be difficult and you will need to be able to demonstrate that you can ride the bike with a great deal of confidence. Another issue is that there are currently no plans test facilities close to London because of the amount of land required and the cost of constructing the off-road facilities. This means having to ride out a significant distance to practice on these sites. Hence it will drive up the cost of training significantly with most people needing an extra 8-10 hours training.

All this means that we expect a huge demand for the current test in the run up to the new one being introduced, and we expect to be very busy indeed, so if you've been meaning or planning to take to your test, now is the time make that booking!

More details of the new 2008-motorcycle test are available from the DSA.

When do I have to pay for the training course and what is your refund policy for training fees?

At the time when you book your training course / exam you will be asked to make a full payment. As we book a student for a course, we "fill up" that slot and that slot is not longer available for anyone else. We will then be turning down other students for those dates. Therefore once we settle on a date and time for your training, payment is due at that time. So when booking with us please make sure that you know which dates you will be available.

If you have already paid and subsequently realize that you will no longer be able to attend your training, you must cancel at least 2 weeks (14 clear days) prior to your scheduled training in order to receive a refund. Unfortunately if you cancel later than 14 days prior to your scheduled training you will not be entitled to a refund. In addition, "no shows" on the day of training mean you will not receive a refund. If you need to re-book, you will have to pay the fees again.

NOTE: In order to continue to provide competitive rates, we cannot make any exceptions to this. Our training slots get filled up quickly and we would lose too much time with our outgoings (exam fees, instructors' fees, admin costs, etc.) if we were to refund for each cancellation.

So remember to book when you know you are available and show up on time !!!

What if YOU cancel my training session?

Please see question - Can the CBT course be cancelled by the Company?. The same conditions apply for all training sessions.

Am I guaranteed to take my test on a 500cc bike if I book a DAS Course?