IAM (Institute of Advanced Motoring) Anyone done it/doing it?
Just wanting to see who's done it or doing it? Anyone know what it is etc?
Dom
Just wanting to see who's done it or doing it? Anyone know what it is etc?
Dom
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IAM (Institute of Advanced Driving) Anyone done it/doing it?
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IAM (Institute of Advanced Driving) Anyone done it/doing it?
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Re: IAM (Institute of Advanced Motoring) Anyone done it/doing it?
I would like to do it, but most likely one of those things I'll never get round to sorting out.
Good thread about it over on Piston Heads
Does it help lower insurance do you know?
I would like to do it, but most likely one of those things I'll never get round to sorting out.
Good thread about it over on Piston Heads
Does it help lower insurance do you know?
I have done the skill for life course. It can lower yours and your family's insurance as they have there own insurance (although it is underwritten by somebody else). I would say if you only won't cheap insurance that's not the reason to do it. It just a really worth while course which shows you how to be a safer driver while still being able to get enjoyment out of driving, it uses a planned system of driving known as IPSGA (Information Position Speed Gear Acceleration). It does require a yearly subscription once you have passed the test.
Thanks Jack
Thanks Jack
Im a member it's quite intense but i will make you better more aware driver, I've yet to see any insurance benefits because i did it just after my renewal, i rang my insurance company and they "will take it into account next time". 
http://www.iam.org.uk/do_you_want_to_be_a_better_car_driver_/doyouwanttobeabettercardriver.html
I want the police training next and skid pans
http://www.iam.org.uk/do_you_want_to_be_a_better_car_driver_/doyouwanttobeabettercardriver.html
I want the police training next and skid pans
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It does lower insurance quite a bit supposedly, that's partly the reason I'm doing it.
Why wouldn't wanting lower insurance be a good enough reason to do it?
Im a member it's quite intense but i will make you better more aware driver, I've yet to see any insurance benefits because i did it just after my renewal, i rang my insurance company and they "will take it into account next time".
http://www.iam.org.uk/do_you_want_to_be_a_better_car_driver_/doyouwanttobeabettercardriver.html
I want the police training next and skid pans
It is intense but I do think it's worth it. Going to the skid pan soon.:devil:
Dom
Putting that on my quotes lowers it by a massive £4.
I had two attempts to take this course way back in the '70s and then again in the '80s before finally passing the test off my own bat in 1998.
I joined the first two occasions yet didn't get as far as the test as I didn't agree with some of the most crucial aspects of their philosophy, the most prominent being their refusal to allow "overlapping". As non-syncromesh gearboxes had been obsolete for years by then. However I finally passed in 1998 and remained a member until the last few months when, finally despairing of some of the inane questions posed by members who really should have known better, packed it in.
The main thing the IAM does is to develop your observation skills without which you don't stand a chance. I didn't agree with everything they stood for, but basically still drive today in accordance with their principles. I rarely cross my hands on the wheel at more than walking pace and still try to look as far ahead as I can while still trying to get a move on.
It won't do you any harm and by and large will improve your driving no end. Follow their advice and get your pass (and your insurance discount) but don't dismiss all they will teach you as the vast majority of it will help you get by without either causing or being the victim of a crash.
I joined the first two occasions yet didn't get as far as the test as I didn't agree with some of the most crucial aspects of their philosophy, the most prominent being their refusal to allow "overlapping". As non-syncromesh gearboxes had been obsolete for years by then. However I finally passed in 1998 and remained a member until the last few months when, finally despairing of some of the inane questions posed by members who really should have known better, packed it in.
The main thing the IAM does is to develop your observation skills without which you don't stand a chance. I didn't agree with everything they stood for, but basically still drive today in accordance with their principles. I rarely cross my hands on the wheel at more than walking pace and still try to look as far ahead as I can while still trying to get a move on.
It won't do you any harm and by and large will improve your driving no end. Follow their advice and get your pass (and your insurance discount) but don't dismiss all they will teach you as the vast majority of it will help you get by without either causing or being the victim of a crash.
I'm seeing a lot more on the road than I did before I started IAM. Tbh even if it's not that much of a discount off insurance then at least I'm actually enjoying it.
Dom
The IAM course can be a little like Pass Plus when you first pass your test in as much as it may not save you a fortune on your insurance premium but in the long run, not writing your car off or being injured is, as the advert says, "Priceless".
Don't just sign up to the IAM without considering the ROSPA scheme.
Unless things have changed, the IAM grade you pass or fail and consider you to be an advanced driver for life.
ROSPA grade you gold, silver or bronze and the pass is valid for 3 years after which you need to re take the test to maintain advanced status.
Any form of advanced training is a good investment and you will benefit which ever one you go with.
Unless things have changed, the IAM grade you pass or fail and consider you to be an advanced driver for life.
ROSPA grade you gold, silver or bronze and the pass is valid for 3 years after which you need to re take the test to maintain advanced status.
Any form of advanced training is a good investment and you will benefit which ever one you go with.
Yep, my thoughts exactly.
I may do ROSPA after but currently all the ones locally are full and not taking any more on, the nearest one to me in Linconshire. Too far.
Dom
Probably in the same era as The beard, I took my IAM back in the 70's.
I did it because I wanted to improve my driving, and it worked. I can't say that I agreed with everything they taught. In fact some of their ideas were so out of date to be ridiculous, and that was 40 years ago! EG. You must never change gear while overtaking because the gearbox might seize up, and you will be left stranded on the wrong side of the road with one hand on the wheel and in danger. OK, I could see their point about being on the wrong side of the road, but surely getting in the best gear to complete the overtake safely is preferable? They were thinking about non-synchro boxes.There were many more like that, but above all, it taught me to have the right attitude to driving, and to improve my awareness. The commentary drive was knackering but quite good fun to do. The test took about an hour and a half and I covered about 45 -5o miles or so as I recall.
Yeah, in my book there's a bit of an error...
It says that if lost you should check your map at a safe point, for example while stationary at traffic lights. I can't multitask...
I'm really enjoying it and it has taught me to see a lot more than I was doing. I've seen road signs on my normal daily commute that I've never ever seen before!
The questions I've been asked on the highway code are weird though.
Dom
The sneaky bit (and I don't know if they still do this) is that you would be driving along trying to take in every single detail, and the examiner would calmly say:
"A few hundred yards back you passed a road sign. What did it indicate?"
So not only did you have to know the meaning of every sign without question, but the hard part was remembering it once you had driven past it, because in reality you see them, match it automatically in your mind and then move on.
I always found that the hardest part.
My instructor (ex copper) said something like:
"If you passed a sign that said the road goes off a cliff in half a mile, would you just forget about it and carry on over the cliff?"
I said with the cockiness of youth that I wasn't aware that such a sign existed, and even if it did, I am fairly confident I would notice well before we went airborne and stop the car. I was tempted to ask if he had made it past PC (as in constable) level in his career, and if so, how? But I thought better of it and shut up.
I don't remember what signs I've just seen lol, we move on, we're observing what's coming up and what hazards are developing, not what we've just passed.
Dom
Jbirchy
New member
I did it about 4 years ago when i was 20 and insurance was killing me. If i'm honest it was the main reason for doing it, but as a keen car enthusiast i wanted to hone my skills.
I found the course very very rewarding and the added value to my day to day driving ever since has been invaluable.
I have been with IAM Surety (IAM's own insurance broker) since i passed the test, and they do a price matching service along with free protected no claims, reasonable breakdown cover amongst other things. Even without the price match, they were actually the only company who would insure me on my previous car (much missed mk5 Golf GTI) at the age of 23 at a very reasonable cost of £647 per year.
I would highly recommend anybody thinking about this to take part!
I found the course very very rewarding and the added value to my day to day driving ever since has been invaluable.
I have been with IAM Surety (IAM's own insurance broker) since i passed the test, and they do a price matching service along with free protected no claims, reasonable breakdown cover amongst other things. Even without the price match, they were actually the only company who would insure me on my previous car (much missed mk5 Golf GTI) at the age of 23 at a very reasonable cost of £647 per year.
I would highly recommend anybody thinking about this to take part!
When you'd done it how much did it bring your insurance down by out of interest?
I'll be thinking about Surety when I've passed it.
Dom
That was exactly my point at the time, but as Beard himself says, you had to put up with a certain amount of pomposity and theories from the days of a man running in front with a red flag, to get to the nuggets, but believe me, overall, the nuggets are well worth it and stay with you forever. My youngest past her test recently, taught mainly by an instructor, but with "wheel time" with me as well. She has said that I have taught her things that her instructor hasn't , and he acknowledged I had done a good job, so it made me happy anyway!
Some of the stuff they have taught me I'm not sure on but I've accepted it and learnt it.
Dom
