Diary Of An ADI

EDIT: For the hard-of-thinking out there, this story is from 2010. BSM is now owned by the AA, and any complaints mentioned in this article are totally irrelevant as far as choosing BSM as a driving school goes. Remember: this TV programme is from 2010.

I haven’t seen it yet – waiting for it to go live on iPlayer – but the BSM Instructor Academy has issued this:

Watchdog Statement

BBC Watchdog – BSM statement.

In keeping with our company policy of keeping our instructors as informed as possible, please see the below statement that has been issued to Watchdog and will be aired on this evening’s show.

“We would like to thank Watchdog for bringing these issues to BSM’s attention.

As the UK’s largest driving school with over 130,000 learner drivers each year, we accept that there are going to be occasional instances where we don’t get it right. However, having taught the nation to drive for over 100 years and with a pass rate at least 20% higher than the national average, it’s important that we work hard to maintain the high standards that we have set for ourselves. We would like to apologise for any customer dissatisfaction in relation to these cases and we have made operational changes and implemented new control measures to ensure they are not repeated.

We are working hard to ensure these instances won’t occur again and we have already started the process of contacting the individual customers concerned. We will be working with them to find suitable resolutions to their problems and offering compensation where appropriate.

Unfortunately, our website incorrectly stated that people pass with BSM every six seconds. This was due to an administrative error rather than an attempt to mislead and we now have controls in place to ensure this won’t happen again.

We commit to monitor all these issues closely and to learn from them in order to continue teaching the UK to drive for the next 100 years.”

We feel this is an honest and fair response and will continue keep you informed of the reaction to the segment on tonights show.

So, it seems that the Watchdog had latched on to several very specific complaints from individuals. I will comment when I have seen the Watchdog report.

One thing I did notice when I was on Watchdog’s site, is that it says of tonight’s programme:

Anne and Matt have been digging up stories on Asda online and Marks and Spencer this week.

Now, doesn’t that look like someone was going to say one thing and ended up not finishing it off? Digging up stories? Or just digging the dirt?

A reader has sent in this link, also from Autoblog. OK, it’s not for poop, but I couldn’t think of anything better for the article title.

I must confess that I already knew about this (or something very similar) from a while back.

From what I can tell (Autoblog isn’t giving much by way of intructional advice), you stuff one of these in your underpants and just pee yourself whenever and wherever the fancy takes you! The material in the pad turns liquid to gel.

It claims that there is no mess and no smell – but I would suggest the things would need to be the size of a small beach towel, otherwise your car seat runs the risk of getting a little messy if you don’t place it right, or if it moves.

And that’s another thing: I like to be confortable when I’m driving, and the idea of having something like this shoved in my keks just doesn’t appeal to me. Even less so once I’d shaken the python and would then have anything up to a litre of warm (but getting colder) gel between my legs!

The advertising spiel goes on about not finding anywhere where you can “go”. You can always find “somewhere”.

Nope! Only the saddest of the sad (or someone with a serious medical condition) is ever going to want to use this. And at £4, it hardly passes as “spending a penny”.

A reader has drawn my attention to this Autoblog story concerning worn road markings. It is also covered by the BBC.

The story is suggesting that, along with potholes, missing or worn road markings are contributing directly to accidents and subsequent fatalities.

A lot of roads in my area have recently been repainted – they really were dire! However, there are still many where it isn’t clear whether there are two lanes or one, and some of the repainting only seems to have taken place within a certain distance of traffic lights or junctions… in other words, only half the job has been done.

The report claims that eight out of ten of the worst roads in the country also have the worst markings. It also adds:

The AA is so concerned about this issue that just last week it sent out thousands of volunteers to report on worn markings near where they live. The results of this survey will be published soon.

I think we need to be careful. Of course, road markings are important, and there is no doubt that their absence can lead to deangerous situations.

But we also need to remember that being a prat comes much higher up the list than that when it comes to wrapping your car (or bike) around a tree.

EDIT: For the hard-of-thinking out there, this story is from 2010. BSM is now owned by the AA, and any complaints mentioned in this article are totally irrelevant as far as choosing BSM as a driving school goes. Remember: this TV programme is from 2010.

At the end of the last episode of Watchdog, they mentioned that they would be covering BSM on the next show (which is 11 November), though they didn’t say for what specific reason. Naturally, this has sent a lot of non-BSM ADIs into orgasm!

Speculation is rife – the more juicy the rumour, the better.

What makes me laugh is that in a week people will know exactly what the storyline is, and they’re going to look right prats for being wrong. Actually, when I think about it, they probably won’t – most of the idiots listening to them want to believe the worst, too. And the beliefs will remain long after the facts are known.

The BSM Instructor Academy website clarifies:

Watchdog

Many of you will have seen Watchdog on BBC1 last night and the fact that BSM are to appear on the program next week. We thought it important to clarify with you the reason for this, particularly as you may be asked questions by your pupils.

The main issue being raised by the program was due to a statement on our website stating that someone passes their test with BSM every 6 seconds. This is of course incorrect and the statement was placed on the website in error. We have been quick to point this out to the BBC and have ensured that this has now been removed.

On the back of this, they have also picked up on four separate complaints sent in to the program by ex BSM pupils, these complaints have for example, related to such matters as one pupil having had four different instructors over a two year period and others where pupils have complained about NTU’s at tests, all of which we have been happy to answer and all of which have been investigated and resolved to the customers satisfaction. It is absolutely key to point out, that through the excellent work carried out by both BSM employees and instructors, BSM have thousands of very satisfied customers and we will of course continue to strive to improve our service by listening to the feedback we receive from all those learning to drive with us.

So, no failed coup. No uncovered world domination plot. Pretty mundane, really.