This article came through on the newsfeeds – at this stage it is just a press release. Until the tabloids get hold if it, no doubt.
The change to the Theory Test – which came into effect on 23rd January 2012 – has been known about for ages. In December 2010 it was mentioned in Despatch, and it has been reiterated several times since ( this is just one example).
In the press release… and more than a week after the event…
Swinton… is warning learner drivers about the changes to the driving theory test.
Well, that’s a good job, then. Because I’m sure driving instructors don’t do that – with it not being part of their job, and everything.
Swinton fails to understand that if the test is harder, then it is harder. It doesn’t need a “warning”, and nor is it their job to handle it. Their job is to provide massive insurance quotes for new drivers after they’ve passed – not to advise them on their training beforehand.
Steve Chelton, Claims Manager at Swinton said, “The best way of gaining knowledge of how a road works is to take plenty of lessons and make observations. Learner drivers should not rely on DVLA revision material to pass the exam; they should study the Highway Code to further their understanding of driving and apply it when they are on the roads. By doing so they are always prepared for challenges that may occur whilst driving and will become safer drivers in the long run and thus reducing the chances of an accident and a claim on their motor insurance policy.”
There is more than one way to skin a cat, Mr Chelton. Some people study hard and pass the theory test before they take any lessons at all. Others wait until they start driving, then start studying. The rest do something that’s in between.
But one thing I can assure you is that not many of them memorise all 1,000 questions without understanding a single word. That’s where you and Mike Penning have got it wrapped around your necks – because YOU don’t understand.
When you consider the size of insurance quotes for new drivers, the crocodile tears over RTA figures, and now a “warning” about the Theory Test getting “harder”, you can’t help but get a strong whiff of hypocrisy from somewhere.
The simple fact is that many people could pass the Theory Test without doing any revision at all (several of mine have). Others do the bare minimum – and resent spending even £1 on study aids. The “new” Theory Test is exactly the same as the old one – even the old one used to pick up new questions from time to time, and all we have here is rewording. It’s not like there’s a new Highway Code or anything.
Like it or not, all that matters is whether people know enough to pass the Theory Test. They don’t HAVE to read the Highway Code, and they don’t HAVE to buy study materials. Most do – but in all honesty, some of them don’t need to, and can pick up most of what they need to know from lessons and driving with their parents.
So, if anything, the Theory Test is too bloody easy.