Frequently Asked Questions

You are not alone, many people are in the same situation. Google is your friend! Do some searching on all of the topics below to educate yourself. There may be more to it than you think, and our job is merely to teach you how to drive the car.

The first thing you need to do is get your learner’s permit (Florida calls this a Learner’s Driver’s License). See FAQ’s below about requirements and how to go about getting it. You can’t take driving lessons or practice driving legally without this!

With that, you can take driving lessons (this is our part of the equation) and hopefully find a licensed driver over the age of 21 who will practice appropriately and cautiously with you between lessons.

Worthy of note:
The Florida State driving test system is very weak. You’ll have to take a very easy multiple choice test to get your learner’s permit. You can get questions wrong on this test. Any one of those questions you don’t know the answer to could result in a traffic ticket (best case) or a crash with property/vehicle damage, personal injury or death. They’re only asking you a small number of questions, AND it’s multiple choice. The real world won’t present you with multiple choice options, you need to KNOW the rules! YOU NEED TO KNOW MUCH MORE THAN WHAT IS ON THE TEST TO BE SAFE ON THE STREET. Please don’t rely on just an online course that’s designed to “teach the test”. READ AND STUDY THE FLORIDA STATE DRIVER’S HANDBOOK (see FAQ item below) and even if you don’t take driving lessons, at least spend some time with a trusted experienced driver and ask lots of questions.

Likewise, the actual driving skills test is absurdly easy. You can pass it having never driven over 20 mph, never made a lane change, never merged onto a highway. YOU NEED TO BE PROFICIENT AT A MUCH HIGHER LEVEL THAN THAT TO BE SAFE ON THE STREET. Don’t think that just because you passed the test and they gave you a license that you are prepared to be a safe driver on the street!

The road test is a joke. Really. Passing the test should not be your priority. Actually LEARNING TO DRIVE should be. There is a big difference between those two things. If you know how to drive, you will pass the test. But, passing the test does NOT indicate that you actually know how to drive.

As for actually getting a car, things you’ll want to look into:
How to buy a car.
Should you buy new or used?
Should you consider electric, hybrid, plug-in hybrid… what are the pros and cons?
How does the type/model/age of the car affect car insurance rates?
Vehicle safety ratings and the safety features of modern cars vs the car you are looking to buy.
How to maintain your car, and how will the type/model/age of the car affect those costs?
How much driving will you do and how will the type/model/age of the car affect fuel economy and the cost of fuel?
Financing: Dealer financing vs bank financing vs leasing vs paying cash.
Financing: Interest rates vs. length of loan, don’t get pushed into a bad deal!
Florida Vehicle Title and Registration requirements.
Car insurance. (required to register and drive)

Have a look at our Pricing page.

Have a look at our Pricing page.

Check out our Pricing page, and our How Many Lessons page to determine if you want to purchase your lessons as a package, and how many lessons you want. Then hop over to the Scheduling page and go set up your account on the scheduler.

You must consent to our Student Agreement when you register on our scheduler. Here it is!

We keep a tight schedule, so we must be strict about no-shows and late-cancels. Read our full Cancellation Policy.

We have lessons available nearly every day of the week with start times varying between 8am and 8pm. If you have a tight schedule, we recommend scheduling at least 8 weeks in advance to ensure that you get the time that you want.

If you need a night lesson, give us a call. Our office hours are 9am-5pm Monday through Friday, but we are often out teaching and unable to answer the phone!

We come to you! We’ll typically pick up and drop off a student at their home. We can also pick up or drop off at school or work. We don’t have to pick up and drop off at the same place, but we DO need to know in advance if we’re doing anything other than our default of picking up and dropping off at your home address! If you have special requirements, please make note of them when you schedule your appointment.

We teach throughout most of Pinellas County. We’re currently limited to the area South of Alderman Rd.

We like mid-sized economy cars. Not too big, not too small, good seat adjustment, good visibility, automatic transmission, good fuel economy, and GREAT air conditioning! We currently use late model Kia and Hyundai cars. All of our cars are state certified with an instructor brake installed.

We prefer to teach in our cars both because we’re very familiar with them, and because they have the instructor brake, and we know we are properly insured. We CAN teach in a student’s vehicle, but we very rarely do it. If we do, it is normally AFTER the student has their full driver’s license. At that point, we’re riding along with the student less as a “state certified driving instructor” and more as a “personal driving coach” to help them find comfort driving their own car.

Depending on what area you live in, we may. But, rest assured that all of our instructors are state certified, and part of that process is fingerprinting and a state background check. And, we will only hire people who teach the way we want them to. That means “yelling” is not part of the curriculum! Students love us!

Probably not. But, don’t worry about it. All of our instructors are trained to teach with the same methods, and we keep notes in our online system so any instructor you get will know what you have and have not done and what you need to work on. If you really want or need the same instructor, you can schedule with only that instructor, but it could greatly limit the lesson times available to you. We recommend just taking the lessons that fit the time you have available, regardless of the instructor.

If you are under 18: You must have had your Florida Learner’s License for 12 months, have documented a minimum of 50 hours of supervised practice, and pass a vision and hearing test and a road test.
If you are 18 or older: Same as above, only you are not required to have your Learner’s License for 12 months.

The requirements are:
Must be 15 or older
Must read the Florida Driver’s Handbook
Must prove identity
Must have taken a Driver Education Traffic Safety (DETS) Course if under 18
Must pass a Road Rules & Road Signs Exam (can be taken online if you are under 18)
Must pass a vision and hearing test
Must have parental consent if under 18

While you’re driving our car as a student, you are covered by our commercial driving school policy.

Driving any other vehicle, you really need to consult with your insurance agent before taking action on procuring a license. Some insurance companies do not consider a driver with a Learner’s Permit to be a “rated driver”. Most DO consider any fully licensed driver, or in some cases, even just a teenager of lawful driving age living in the household, to be a “rated driver”. The insurance rates for teen drivers can, unfortunately, be very high.

There are some insurance companies that still offer discounts for professional driver’s education. In some cases, the discounts can be significant enough to more than pay for the course! You’ll need to consult with your insurance agent to be sure. If a discount is offered, it usually requires a minimum of 6 hours of instruction.

This will vary greatly depending on the student and their history. Some students have experience with a variety of things (anything from driving other vehicles or bicycles to riding horses or playing sports, even boating) that can make it easier for them to learn the basics of driving. Others are “natural observers” who have been watching other people drive for many years, and will pick it up quickly. And some just have a natural affinity for driving. And others don’t. And that’s fine! But, we can’t tell you with any certainty how long it will take any particular student to learn to be a safe and confident driver. The amount and quality of practice that a student gets between their lessons is also a significant factor. We do have some general guidelines on our How Many Lessons page that may help.

The printed driver’s handbook has become a myth in our office, we can’t remember the last time we saw one! It’s available online, and it is one of the best things you can read! Seriously! It’s very well-written and very thorough. Even if you’ve been driving for years, you should give it a read to refresh yourself on a lot of little details that you may have forgotten… or that may have changed.

Florida Driver’s Handbook (English)
Florida Driver’s Handbook (Spanish)