LGV/HGV Training Northampton

1 – Beware The Broker!

Many of the training companies you will find on Google are not training companies at all, they are brokers. They will portray themselves as training companies but actually have no vehicles, no instructors and no training experience. What they will do is low ball a price then try to find a company willing to do the training for that reduced price (whilst still taking their cut off the top). You can imagine the quality of training you will get if you are the unlucky victim of this system.  Ask yourself why the training company would be willing to work for a fraction of the price of other companies. Hint: It’s not because they are so busy with referrals from happy customers that they can’t keep up with demand!

2 – 2 to 1 Training.

There are very few HGV training companies that train with just one student to one instructor – most will pair up their students and train 2 to 1. We think that one to one training is essential to really understand the way you learn and avoid diluting your time by pairing you up with someone you’ve never met before. It sounds great when you are offered a 5 day course, but you will be sharing that time with another customer, so you will only get half of that. And if that person is much less competent than you they could actually eat in to your time if they need extra help.

3 – Who’s Training You?

It’s a little known fact that anyone can train people to drive a lorry, providing they have held a licence for the specified time. You need no instructional ability, just buy a truck, stick some L-plates on it and you’re an HGV Driver Trainer! We’re different. We only use experienced Driving Instructors who have not only proven their own driving skills to a high standard but have also undergone extensive training in teaching driving skills. We are committed to ensuring the best possible levels of instruction as part of our continued in house instructor development programme. ADI’s are also government tested regularly to ensure they maintain their high standards, this is not just some in house ride along from another instructor, but a Government Enforcement Officer will regularly assess the instructors ability and could strip their driving instructors qualification from them if they are sub-standard.

4 – Automatic Trucks.

If you’ve never driven a lorry before you may be surprised to learn that lorry gearboxes are completely different to the ones found in your car. Trying to use an 8 speed gearbox, a four over four or range changer can be mind boggling for someone who’s new to lorry driving! We only use automatic trucks that are so much easier to drive than their manual counterparts, meaning that we can keep the course lengths shorter and the costs down – and you don’t have to worry about learning to use a complicated gearbox for your test. You’ll still get a full manual entitlement even if you train in an automatic truck, so why make it harder for yourself?

5 – Size of Training Vehicle.

The size of the vehicle that you take your test in does not define the licence category needed to drive it, it’s the weight of the vehicle that is important. So why take your test in a larger vehicle than necessary? You didn’t learn to drive in a stretched limo, so why do some training companies use large lorries when smaller ones are easier to drive and perfectly acceptable on test? We use more compact lorries that are easy to drive and meet the DVSA test criteria – yet another way to improve your chances of passing the test.

6 – Check Locations.

When choosing an HGV training company, location plays a big part right? Why travel further than necessary to reach your training company. It seems very logical to choose someone local to you, until you turn up for your training and find out that you need to spend the first and last hour of your training time travelling to and from the test area. Not such a great use of time we think you’ll agree. We start our training from the test centre, so you don’t have to spend a big chunk of your paid-for time travelling to get to the training area. The moment you drive out of our yard you are driving on a test route. It makes perfect sense to drive to the training area yourself and meet your trainer there, rather than waste your course time driving back and forth.

7 – More than just driver training!

Most LGV training companies won’t really be interested in talking to you until you have completed your medical, got your provisional and done your theory test. We think that you should get support all the way, so we’ll organise all of that for you, including arranging your medical with a specialist doctor, giving access to the latest DVSA online revision material (not just lending you a scruffy book and copied DVD!), we’ll support you with the DVLA licence application paperwork as well as provide all your tests and practical training.

You are welcome to do these steps independently if you prefer and just come to us for the practical driving element, but having a one stop, all inclusive service takes the stress out of qualifying and gives you a single point of contact, ready to help you every step of the way. 

Our customer reviews speak for themselves.