Duties Owed by Driving Instructors

Duties Owed by Driving Instructors

When you begin your driving lessons you put your trust in the instructor and the fact that it is them who are responsible for your driving. They will teach you everything you need to know about driving a car, and do it responsibly and with patience.

Some people may be unclear on exactly what duty of supervision and care that a driving instructor owes their pupil.  The duty of a driving instructor to a pupil is the same as that owed by a supervisor to his friend (Ritchie, 2009).

If a learner driver becomes involved in a car accident, whilst under the supervision of a driving instructor it is important to cover the instructor’s role in the accident. The judge would need to look at whether the driver was ready for the driving expected of him. And what the instructor could have done to prevent the accident, and any negligence demonstrated.

Some cases of this are outlined in The Guide to RTA Liability:

Gibbons v Priestly

This case involved a claim brought by the injured learner driver against her driving instructor and the driving school which had employed him. Prior to the accident the claimant, described by the judge as intelligent, middle aged women, had received 18 lessons provided by the defendants in a dual controlled vehicle. A subsequent lesson with the same instructor took place in the claimant’s husband’s vehicle which was not fitted with dual controls. The accident happened about 40 minutes or so into that lesson when the claimant turned left out of a junction and started to drive downhill. The claimant let in the clutch sharply and over-steered to the left so that the car was driving towards a tree. The instructor instructed the claimant to brake and pulled up the car’s handbrake but the car struck the tree. The claim was dismissed. The judge found that there was no negligence on the part of the defendant in allowing the lesson to take place in the single control car; given the instructors knowledge of her driving, this was a natural progression. Further, the Court could not criticise the instructor’s handling of the five seconds situation between the turn and the collision.

If you are a learner driver or a driving instructor and have been involved in a car accident then you may be able to make an injury claim for compensation. If you’re a learner driver and believe the negligence of your driving instructor caused the accident you should speak to a personal injury law firm. For more information or free legal advice then contact the Injury Lawyers today.