A DRIVING instructor and an examiner have been convicted of accepting bribes to pass students.
Salima Rashid, 49, of St George’s Avenue, Grays, took money from pupils she taught, of up to £1,000 a time, from January 1, 2007, until last June saying she would get them passed at the Barking Test Centre.
The grandmother of eight would then split the cash between two different examiners at the centre, including 38-year-old Nick Madigan, of Kitkatts Road, Canvey.
During a trial at Snaresbrook Crown Court, Rashid denied she had ever taken bungs from students or had any knowledge about the scam, blaming the examiners and her “corrupt” pupils.
But jurors found her guilty of conspiracy to commit bribery and Rashid was sentenced to two years imprisonment.
One former student, Nadia Ali, said she had handed over a envelope, stuffed with £1,000 cash, to her instructor on the day of her test.
She went on to pass, despite having a near miss with an oncoming car during her exam.
Madigan pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bribery and is due to be sentenced next month.
One learner, Gurpal Bhogal, had told the court during the trial he had been failed by Madigan in January 2008, but just minutes later was offered a pass by the examiner in return for a sum of cash.
Judge Simon Wilkinson said Rashid had committed an offence which was “serious on many levels”.
Judge Wilkinson added: “As an officially approved driving instructor, the public expected you to maintain the highest standards in relation to that position. Instead you betrayed them.”
Another examiner, Kulwinder Mann, 47, from Chadwell Heath, had passed students after taking backhanders without even taking them out onto the road.
Mann was judged unfit to plea as he suffers from mental health problems, but was found guilty of doing an act relating to conspiracy to commit bribery, obtaining a pecuniary advantage and money laundering. He will be sentenced on April 8.
A LEARNER driver used a dodgy manoeuvre to try to pass her fifth test by offering the examiner a bribe – then attacked him when he refused to take the cash.
Former teacher Jin Su, 35, gave the official a red envelope containing between £400 and £500 in folded twenties, saying: “This will be good for you – and for me.”
Su, who has a young son, handed over the money before she began but Driving Standards Agency examiner Keith Ashcroft refused to take it and put the brakes on her test.
Furious Sue then attacked him in the street, Manchester crown court heard yesterday.
She grabbed his wrists and tried to push him back into the car, shouting: “I want the test to continue!” When arrested, she told police that giving money in a red envelope is a Far Eastern custom to bring good luck, but later admitted it had been a bribe.
Su, from Swinton, pleaded guilty to offering a bribe and common assault.
Preparing the learner driver during private driving practice.
Make sure that the learner has a valid provisional driving licence.
Ensure the learner has mastered the basic car control skills, including the emergency stop. He or she should take some lessons with a professional instructor in a dual-controlled car first.
Discuss and agree with the learner that the aim is to help them practise what they are being taught in their professional lessons.
This article provides advice about helping learner car drivers during private driving practice. We start with preparation.
Prepare Yourself
Check you are legally entitled to supervise a learner driver. You must:
● be at least 21 years old
● have a full driving licence,which you have held for at least 3 years, for the type of car (automatic or manual).
It is illegal to receive any payment for accompanying a learner driver. Check that the motor insurance policy allows the learner to drive the car, and the insurers know the learner’s age.
Take a driver assessment or advanced driving course to refresh your own skills and knowledge (speak to us here at Central Learner Driving for more info).
At the very least, read the latest edition of the Highway Code, and if possible, ‘Driving – the essential skills’.
Set a good example. It is much harder to convince a learner, if she or he sees that you don’t practise what you preach.
Talk to the learner’s instructor and ask when the learner is ready to begin private practice. Keep in contact during the learning period (if possible, sit in on some lessons) to support the instructor. It is very useful to keep a record of the private practice by using ‘The Driver’s Record’ or ‘The Official Guide to Accompanying L Drivers’.
Remember, rules such as the drink drive laws and the ban on using a handheld mobile phone while driving, apply to anyone supervising a learner driver.
Although you may not be driving, you are ‘in control’ of the vehicle.
We’ve been teaching people to pass their driving tests throughout the Bedfordshire towns and villages and all of Northamptonshire.
Driving Lessons in Bedfordshire
Driving Lessons in Oakley
Driving Lessons in Pavenham
Driving Lessons in Ravensden
Driving Lessons in Wilstead
Driving Lessons in Northants
Driving Lessons in Rushden
Driving Lessons in Wymington
Driving Lessons in Wellingborough
Link each of these listings to their own individual page titled for example Driving Lessons in Oakley…..
The driving test will see changes from 4th October 2010, this is the first of many alterations that will be seen, for learners.
Some test centres have already begun to introduce this on test. It will involve a series of instructions, accompanied by a picture/drawings of the route to be taken, this will help those who are dyslexic too. A picture or visual image is easier to remember than spoken instruction. The alternative will be to follow a route, with the aid of road signs and markings.
This work should have already begun within your lessons, and should not be seen as anything to worry about. When you pass your test, you will need to plan routes on your own, if you do not take pass plus then it may be totally new to you. Route planning and driving safely can be quite challenging at first.
New drivers have a greater risk statistically, and therefore changes to the driving test have had to be made to try and reduce this. This is not just a problem within the UK, but has shown an increase of risk across Europe in the 17 – 25 age group.
