The cost of motoring has become an area of increasing concern in recent years with fuel prices continuing to escalate and the average motorist now paying £921 per year for a car insurance policy according to the latest figures released by the AA.

There has therefore never been a worse time to be a new driver. So in light of these prices rises, how much does it really cost to finance your driving tuition?

The cost of learning

Driving authority the DVLA has reported that the average motorist will have completed 47 hours of professional tuition with a driving instructor prior to passing their test.

The cost of lessons will obviously vary, but the AA now charges £24 per hour for professional tuition through its driving school with a discount of £2 for those who book in advance. The combined total for this is therefore £1,034 in order to complete the average 47 hours of tuition which are required by the majority. This might seem a lot, but you must consider that the tutor must cover the cost fuel, insurance and general car maintenance before even thinking about their salary.

However there are other costs to consider on the road to passing your test. Your driving will of course be assessed through two examinations, firstly a theory test comprising 50 multiple choice questions of which 43 must be answered correctly. This will cost £31 to complete.

Next up is obviously the dreaded practical test where you will be assessed by a driving examiner. The cost of a practical test will vary depending on the day on which you complete; with tests completed on a weekday (Monday-Friday) costing £62 and those completed at the weekend costing £75. The combined cost of the theory and practical test will therefore be between £93 and £106; that is assuming that you are successful in both tests first time around. Do bear in mind that the average motorist passes their practical test on their second attempt.

The average driver therefore spends £1,189 on this process before the £50 cost of purchasing a provisional licence is factored in.

Private tuition

Alongside the 47 hours of professional tuition, the DVLA noted that the average driver also has 20 hours of private practice under their belts upon successfully passing their test. This must be completed in the company of another driver who is at least 21 years of age and has a minimum of 3 years driving experience.

Private tuition can be even more expensive than professional lessons. Despite the much publicised rising cost of fuel, it is actually insurance which often proves to be the most costly element.

The before mentioned average premium of £921 is distorted somewhat by the disproportionately high prices which are paid by both young and newly qualified drivers. MoneySupermarket claims that motorists in this group typically pay premiums in excess of £2,000. Car insurance companies calculate premiums based on risk; with drivers who are deemed the most likely to make a claim being on the receiving end of the highest premiums. It is therefore easy to see why insurers might inflate learner driver car insurance premiums accordingly.

Going without insurance is simply no longer an option, with the recently introduced CIE (Continuous Insurance Enforcement) regulations meaning that police are able to issue fines of up to £5,000 to anyone who is found to be driving a vehicle which is not covered by an adequate insurance policy.

If you are going to be forced to buy your own car in order to practice privately, then things obviously become even more costly. With the initial car purchase cost, vehicle maintenance and road tax all needing to be considered.

Bring down the cost of private tuition

There really isn’t much you can do about the cost of driving lessons, and it is often worth paying a higher rate for a respectable tutor who could ultimately lower the number of hours it takes to bring you up to speed. £22 per hour might seem a little pricey at first, but it isn’t so bad when you take into account factors such as insurance, fuel, tax and also the instructor’s salary.

However, there are things you can do to bring down the cost of private tuition; with the vehicle being the key to this. It is highly recommended that learner drivers opt for vehicles that have good fuel economy, as well as being both cheap to tax and insurance.

Let’s start by looking at insurance. Every car which is on the road in the UK is assigned to an insurance group numbered between one and fifty, with those in group fifty being the most expensive to insure. It is therefore advised the learner drivers opt to conduct their private practice in a vehicle which is classed into the lowest insurance group possible in order to benefit from the cheapest premiums available to them.

The vehicles which occupy the lower car insurance groups tend to be those which are powered by smaller engines on account of it being less likely that drivers will lose control of them. Luckily, these vehicles generally consume less fuel and produce less C02 than those with larger engines which ultimately results in cheaper road tax prices. All of these factors are linked, and car insurance group therefore tends to be a good indicator as to the ultimate running costs of a vehicle and the total cost of learning.

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