Bristolandbathintensivecourses レビュー 85

On purchasing you are informed your allocated driver will be in touch the week before. Having not heard anything by Wednesday the week before, I contacted them, only to be told that the instructor was no longer available and the best they could offer was an instructor that was available for 2 hours per day of that week (with the rest to happen on another week) - I reluctantly agreed, as it was short notice and better than nothing (I had already booked the week off). In hindsight I wish I had just cancelled then.

The instructor arrived on the Monday, he didn't know the Kingswood test area or local streets and I noticed a few days in that he had a pink trainee (PDI) badge - I had not been informed of his trainee status and at the time, the website stated “DVSA approved instructors” (strongly insinuating an ADI) and “Local instructors with plenty of experience and knowledge of the test routes." Following my contact with the manager to point out this hugely misleading statements, the website has now been altered, but be aware, your course may not be intensive, nor with a fully qualified instructor, or one with knowledge of the local test roads!

After the first week / 10 hours, I had lost all trust in the company and requested the remainder to be refunded. The partial refund process took multiple weeks and was only resolved when I threatened a full dispute - funnily enough, they were able to process it rather quickly at that point. Even with a partial refund, I do not think what I paid was worthwhile and per hour worked out expensive for a trainee. Overall, it was a massive waste of my time, both in terms of the week booked and the multiple emails afterwards. AVOID!

I found the company to be professional and quick to respond to contact I made with them. Took my lessons with James. He was friendly, knowledgeable, reassuring and helpful during the time I spent with him. His patience and constructive feedback made the experience enjoyable and productive.

Alan was an amazing instructor. He helped me get through the anxiety of Driving and explaining and showed me how to fix my mistakes. I believe Alan is the only reason I was able to pass my test as he made sure I felt confident in my self and made sure I had time and a bit of extra practice the day of the test.

I recently completed another 6 hours refresher course.
As before, the instructor was exceptionally patient and knowledgeable. Very accommodating at fitting my sessions round my work pattern- all round another very good experience.

I’ve never left a bad review before but I had such a terrible experience with this company that I have to warn people.

I booked the fast track 5 day with theory test attached in April due to start 12th May. I wasn’t given any locations or details and had to chase up via my contact **** numerous times over the weeks approaching and even then I didn’t get the timings until the evening of the day before I was due to start, so I’d had to clear the entire week (I have two children, I’m self employed and I run a CIC.) Unfortunately I couldn’t find my provisional licence (totally my fault) and they very kindly rescheduled my time slot. However when the June date arrived I was told there had been an ‘internal error’ and we would have to reschedule again. No problem, I was happy to do that. I then had delay after delay, terrible communication between the driver I had been allocated and the office. As I said, I am self employed with two children, one at that point was under 2. I had to clear 5 weeks of my life entirely because they kept changing dates and weren’t able to confirm the hours of the weeks that I had had to put aside. The earliest dates they could eventually offer were mid September - bear in mind that I booked in April.

I emailed them on July 24th to explain that by this point I had lost a large amount of money and time and would expect both the training in September and my money back. I was sent back and forth between **** in the office and the manager, both using the same email and both telling me things I already knew, no-one keeping to when they said they would get back to me by, the manager offering compensation but never outlining what it would be exactly.

When eventually they got back to me the week before my training was booked in, they said I could either do the training (four days not five, not including my paid for theory test or ‘fast tracked’ option, clearly void at this point -5 months later) - or I could have my money back. I obviously chose to have my money back.

The manager then sent me a message saying that he would try to arrange some compensation. Again, he didn’t get back to me apart from to offer a discount if I rebooked! As I booked a fast tracked course on April 6th and I had to wait until September to have a four day course with no add ons despite having paid for them or my money back (and lots of personal costs incurred) there was no way I would rebook with this company.

Such an awful experience.

Our daughter is autistic and struggles with new situations. We contacted the office before she started and they assured us that they can help and accommodate her needs. The instructor Alan called myself to discuss our daughter and how he would help her. From the 1st day she gained so much confidence from Alan and his calm and professional teaching skills.
Today she passed her test and this was 100% due to how Alan supported and encouraged her driving . Many thanks 👏🏽

I started my intensive course this week and from the very first day I felt comfortable. My instructor, Maruf, has been amazing – patient, supportive, and very clear in the way he explains things, which makes everything easy to understand. The progress I’ve made since Monday is a huge difference. After my first day I was already on the road, and Maruf gave me so much confidence and reassurance. I’m really happy with how it’s going so far.
Thanks to Bristol and Bath intensive course

Had my lessons with Tim who was an absolute delight to learn from, very friendly and funny while making you feel at ease as well as motivated. Also extremely down to earth and fair, can rearrange lessons or move things around for legitimate reasons and works as best as he can around you. Couldn't recommend highly enough!

Did refresher lessons- I passed my test aged 41,in2012, but had really lost my confidence.
The instructor was extremely patient, and lessons were very much individually tailored to meet my specific requirements and needs.
Flexible lesson times were really helpful, and my confidence improved very quickly.

had my week intense corse with Paul who made me feel so relaxed even when I was stressing out we also had some laughs along the way as well,
now passed 3 weeks after couldn't be happier higher recommended

They advertise 5 day course. But reality is more like one month course. Delays in getting an instructor, delays in a theory test, delays in driving test. So don't be surprised if 5 day course turns in to a 5 week course.

Our driving Instructor, Alan, was absolutely brilliant - instilled confidence, taught so clearly, was super flexible over lessons and made the lessons such an enjoyable experience. Test all passed and my daughter is now a quietly confident and safe driver - could not be more grateful for Alan’s help.

This company is great.Tim was an amazing driving instructor, stayed calm and taught me well, i passed first time learning with him 10/10 man, made my experience great :)

I learnt a lot from my instructor Alan on this course! He was very helpful and very informative, and made sure to push me in things I wasn't as confident in to help me learn them. The title of 'intensive' course is very accurate and it was tiring, but I don't regret taking it as I feel I learnt a lot from it. Before the course started, I also got help a few times from Phil whenever I emailed the company about questions, so I feel the need to credit him as well.

Paul was lovely and he really helped to get me to understand everything I needed to as well as letting me make the mistakes and then helping me to fix them so I can learn from them too

I booked an intensive driving course with BathBristolIntensiveCourses and had a poor experience from start to finish.

From my very first lesson, the instructor asked intrusive and inappropriate questions about my family and relationships. Despite me asking him to stop, he continued to raise personal topics in later lessons. His teaching style was overwhelmingly critical, offering little constructive guidance and often undermining my confidence. He also shouted and pressured me to make manoeuvres I judged dangerous, breaking my concentration. At the end of my course he told me I would “fail spectacularly” if I took my test, without providing any technical reasons — just delivered in a bullying and undermining way.

When I tried to complain, the company’s process only made matters worse. Communication was slow, vague, and inconsistent. Important emails went unanswered until I chased multiple times. I was promised a morning call with a manager, but this didn’t happen until 17:15. I was told I’d receive an email setting out the points to be raised with the instructor before he was spoken to, but this only came after I chased again late the following day. The manager also promised to call me afterwards to confirm the conversation had taken place — this never happened. When I chased, I received a dismissive “yes it has” with a quote from my email saying I didn’t want to know his response, ignoring the fact their own manager had promised me a call. When I pointed this out, the response was essentially “he can call you if you want.”

Throughout, my questions about their complaints procedure and safeguarding processes were ignored. At no point did I feel that the company had a safe, professional, or empathetic way of handling serious complaints.

The package I bought included the company organising a driving test, I chased to have this booked for me and when this never occurred I booked one myself. I then spent three months chasing for a refund. At first they confirmed it would be refunded, then the matter was dropped without explanation. It was only picked up again while I was going through the exhausting complaint process.

I told the manager clearly that I did not want to get into a car with any of their instructors again. Because of the bullying and lack of constructive teaching I received. Subsequently I have had a lesson with an independent driver who has reassured me I am test ready and there is nothing wrong with my driving.

This company is incompetent, and potentially unsafe. The instructor’s conduct was unacceptable, and the company’s complaint handling showed a lack of professionalism, urgency, and safeguarding. I would advise against trusting them with your training.

Alan was a brilliant teacher, very clear and constructive, and a lovely guy all round. Would definitely recommend requesting for him as your instructor. The whole experience was very helpful and enjoyable.

The course with Alan went very well. I was really pleased with the service i received. Very good service from start to finish.

I booked with Bristol and Bath Intensive Courses, paying extra for the theory and practical test booking service. On receiving my login details, I realised the company is affiliated with "My5Day" and "Drive2Us". I had specifically avoided these companies due to terrible reviews and a feature on BBC's Watchdog. Had I known of this affiliation, I never would have booked.

Just days before my start date, I was informed my original instructor was unavailable. The "backup plan" was to change my 5-day course of 4-hour lessons into a 10-day course of 2-hour lessons. This was a frustrating and unprofessional last-minute change, particularly being allocated a trainee instructor.

Despite paying for them to book my theory test, this was never done. The admin team was incredibly slow to reply to any queries, and often failed to answer my questions directly. My instructor commented on how poor their admin team was and advised me to get a refund for the test booking fees and do it myself, which I did. This process took several days of chasing.

The course details stated I was entitled to free use of the instructor's car on test day. When the time came, the instructor tried to charge me for it, stating he'd never heard of this policy. I had to contact the admin team again to confirm I was correct.

Initially the instructor was friendly. However, the quality of the actual instruction was poor. There was no clear lesson plan or structure; we simply drove around areas near the test centre. I can honestly say I learned more about proper driving techniques from watching YouTube instructors and then applying those lessons myself.

Before my first practical test, the instructor was full of praise, telling me my driving was excellent and I was more than ready. Unfortunately, I made a single, silly mistake on the test and received a serious fault, resulting in a fail. I accepted this was my error entirely. I managed to book a new test for three weeks later however the instructor completely reversed his opinion of my driving. He now claimed I wasn't ready, that 3 weeks was not enough time, and that my "test nerves" were too bad. His assessment felt incredibly unfair, given the nature of my mistake. I tried to reason with him, but he refused to take me for the test.

I was forced to buy my own car to take my second test. I passed with only one minor. This outcome proves that I was, in fact, a safe and competent driver who was ready for the test. Between the disreputable company affiliation, the administrative chaos, and the contradictory and unsupportive instructor, I cannot recommend this company to anyone. Avoid and save your money and stress.

UPDATE in response to the company's reply:
The company claims they have "no affiliation with My5Day or Drive2Us". This is factually incorrect. The student training portal provided by the company clearly features course materials and branding for My5Day. The login they provide you for the "Theory Test Pro" service is covered in Drive2Us branding and features Drive2Us in the URL. A simple search of public records confirms that all three companies are owned by the same person. For the company to claim it has “no affiliation with My5Day or Drive2Us” is a deliberate attempt to mislead customers.

The company's reply also contains several contradictions. They claim to have my records yet state they cannot contact me because I "have not provided details". They claim the instructor "prepared me well," yet also defends his refusal to take me to my second test. They cannot have it both ways. Either I was well-prepared, in which case his refusal was unjustified, or I wasn’t. The response suggests "remedial training" is common after a fail. It's important for readers to know that the instructor offered no such help; he wrote me off completely.

The company attempts to take credit for my eventual pass, so I want to be unequivocally clear about where that credit is due. My strong performance on my first test and my final pass is a direct result of the countless hours I spent studying videos from independent YouTube driving instructors and practicing in my own car with my wife. Essentially, this expensive 'intensive course' amounted to little more than paying for access to a car in which I could practice what I was teaching myself at home. Incidentally, the fact that their own training materials are largely just a playlist of videos from the unaffiliated 'World Driving' YouTube channel only reinforces this point. They are taking credit for a success that was achieved through the hard work of myself and online content creators.
Their response is filled with the same dishonesty and lack of professionalism that defined my entire experience.

The course was absolutely fantastic, couldnt have asked for a better instructor than Alan, he was very patient and supportive. When i booked the course i recieved an email on the same day from a member of the team confirming everything and there was always someone on hand to help me.