There are no regulations here to govern accreditation of driving instructors
Amid the now traditional road safety campaigns which accompany the Christmas season, it is sobering to realise that many people driving on our roads may have paid for driving lessons from someone with little or no qualifications.
Indeed, as matters currently stand, practically anybody with a driving licence can put up a sign on their car and call themselves a driving instructor.
Unlike other European countries, there are no regulations in place here governing the accreditation of driving instructors.
Disturbingly, this is despite the fact that these are the professionals charged with teaching a variety of people - ranging from teenage 'boy racers' to OAPs- how to use our roads.
Such a situation has inevitable implications for safety, according to Alan Richardson, acting chief executive of the National Safety Council(NSC).
In theory at least, there is nothing to stop a paedophile leaving Mountjoy prison one day, and setting themselves up as a driving instructor the next, he points out.
"There is no prohibition on anybody being a driving instructor at the moment, and there is nothing anyone can do. For example, there is nothing the gardaí can do because there is no registration," he explains.
So just how bad is the situation here? And as we wait for long-overdue Driver Testing and Standards Authority Bill (2004) to make its way through the Oireachtas, what can - and is - being done now?
The driving instruction industry itself has attempted to address the issue of instructor training in recent years.
One development has been the introduction, 10 years ago, of the Driving Instructor Register (DIR).
Anyone hoping to join the register, which is co-funded by the Department of Transport, must pass a three-part examination looking at areas such as driving theory, tuitional ability, and the standard of driving of the individual in question.
Des Cummins, chief executive of the DIR, says almost 1,300 driving instructors have been examined and are continually monitored to the best European standards via the DIR.
He estimates that about three out of every four driving instructors here is registered with it.
Crucially, however, participation in the register is not obligatory - meaning membership is not a precondition to becoming a driving instructor.
But Cummins also believes that successive governments have "steadfastly refused" to really grasp the issue of training here.
"We're the only country in Europe that allows driving instructors to impart their own style of driving to learners for reward," he says.
"Road safety has never received any form of priority in Ireland. For example, there are no votes in withdrawing the provisional licence anomalies."
Nevertheless, he believes there is an "insatiable appetite" for accreditation among driving instructors themselves.
This is partly explained by competitive pressures in a market where instructors need to be able to provide assurances that they are qualified to do their job.
"For example, if a case went to court, the first thing a judge would ask is what qualifications do you have to be an instructor," he says.
"We're imparting a life skill here, and we have to ensure we cease the practice of drivers instilling their own practices."
Cathy Bacon, chairwoman of the Irish Driving Instructors Association, echoes Cummins's belief that most driving instructors want to be accredited.
She estimates that there are roughly 2,000 instructors operating in the State, and says the sector has been asking for Government regulation for many years.
This was a major contributory factor in the establishment of the DIR, which it was originally hoped would become mandatory for all instructors to participate in.
"Safety opportunities are being lost because instructors like myself are spending time trying to get recognition," she points out.
Other driving instructors who are not registered with the DIR may train in Britain or elsewhere, Bacon says. But someone who has not achieved accreditation may still be a good instructor.
"I couldn't say that just because somebody hasn't sat a test, he or she isn't good at what they are doing. I would always say go ahead based on recommendations. Probably the best part of any motor school's business is word of mouth," she says.
"But I would like to see driver education get the recognition it requires - never mind deserves. We have too many people being killed on the road. Every day on Irish roads, some family is left without a family member."
"Parents invest more in dancing lessons than driving lessons. We are not insisting that our young people have adequate skills when getting into a vehicle."
There have been moves by the Government to introduce legislation to regulate the training of driving instructors.
A spokeswoman for the Department of Transport says the Driver Testing and Standards Authority Bill (2004), which will allow for the establishment of a Road Safety Authority (RSA), is due to proceed to committee stage in the Oireachtas early in the new year.
Once established, the RSA will examine the issue of training for instructors, she says. Other areas which it will address include possible reforms of the current driving test.
However, the spokeswoman is somewhat more circumspect when it comes to saying when we can expect the new Bill to come into effect. She stresses that it is not possible to give an exact timeframe for its passage through the Oireachtas.
"There are plans to register driving instructors. You can expect that will be one area which we intend to focus on," she says. "We may well do some work on that in advance of the Bill being finalised."
For his part, Alan Richardson of the NSC says he "cannot wait for registration to come in - the sooner the better."
But especially given the timeframe necessary to allow current instructors to prepare themselves for any statutory examination, he believes the earliest we will see a mandatory system of accreditation encompassing all instructors is in four years time.
In the meantime, countless lives may be lost unnecessarily on our roads.
Wider reform of the licencing system, to include compulsory basic training for all drivers, in particular motorbike users, is also necessary, he points.
"The actual driving test itself hasn't changed in 40 years. For example, you are not tested on driving in the dark, or motorway driving, or how to parallel park a car. There are major deficiencies in the current test," he cautions.
"And the only code for driving instructors is the voluntary registration run by the DIR. If people are being taught by someone who doesn't know basic roadcraft, then we have people who are merely being trained to pass the driving test. They are not being trained to drive properly."