‘Firms to Decide Fees for Proposed Contract’

‘Our job is to teach not to decide who gets the licence and who doesn’t’

The Fiji Driving School Association is looking at ways of formulating a uniform contract for driving schools.

This would become a national contract to be used by the all driving schools.

Association president Rajesh Narayan said the amount of fees chargeable to the students would depend on the driving schools individually. “Currently we have individual contract terms and conditions with our learners so what we want to do is make one uniform contract for everybody to have one similar contract,” Mr Narayan said during the Association Annual General Meeting on Saturday in Nadi.

He said sometimes it was difficult for the learners to understand the contracts.

“One of the things that we find difficult is that when a learner signs a contract, he or she fails to understand what are the terms and conditions,” he said.

He said it was important for a learner to understand them such as hours of learning, what she/he must be taught and what should be brought and conditions of terminating the contract, Mr Narayan said.

Our job is to teach not to decide who gets the licence and who doesn’t: Association

Mr Narayan warned Association members not to get involved in any corrupt practice.

“Driving schools have been under the spotlight for the corrupt practices and we have reminded our members strictly that of whatever they are doing they have to do it faithfully and not involve themselves in corrupt practices.” And to curb the number of corrupt practices the association has requested LTA for a number of things such as having separate counters to deal with driving schools and learners and strict number of hours of driving, he said.

“We as driving schools should not be determining which learner should pass and which should fail.” Moreover, the association has made a call to make certain hours of practical learning for a student driver compulsory in a driving school car rather than all lessons in a private vehicle.

Mr Narayan said this would ensure safety of the public on the road.

The association is also looking to host an awards night for driving schools.

We as driving schools should not be determining which learner should pass and which should fail Rajesh Narayan Fiji Driving School Association president