A driving student of mine sent me this email after a few driving lessons and he was shocked how bad people drive: Hi Greg, this is Isaac. I have to write a speech for a class and I have chosen to write it on how the dmv has “dummified” America. I just wanted some of your insight. What are the top 5 problems with the way the DMV currently operates?

Hey Isaac, I am happy you are taking this subject on with your speech.

#1 problem is the current drive test for people of any age is often no longer then ten minutes long. There is no real requirement to show a persons driving ability and skill. Many of the required elements of drive tests in years gone past are no longer required like a 3 point turn, parallel parking, making a u-turn to name a few. My two children never had to make a lane change on their drive tests.

#2 problem is the Graduated Licensing Program that the DMV instituted a number of years ago requires that parents of young drivers under 18 years of age put in 50 hours of additional driving over and above the 6 hours required by a driving school. To verify that the parents had done the required 50 hours the DMV has a log sheet form on their website that is required to be filled out by the parents and turned in at the time of the drive test. Stupid thing is the DMV never asks to see the 50 hour driving log sheet. They do not implement the required elements of their own program. As a side note parents are a big part of the problem because most do not do near enough additional practice driving with their kids and the DMV let’s them get away with it.

#3 problem is after the age of 18 a California resident can literally take the permit test and drive test on the same day. None of the requirements of a 151/2 to 171/2 year old apply, to have the permit for 6 months before taking the drive test or having 6 hours of lessons by a driving school or to do the additional hours of driving with parents. So the result is that many people are waiting until they are a bit older and fast tracking the whole process as the word is out that a knucklehead can pass the current drive test. These people get their license and get out there with no real knowledge or skill and become a crash statistic adding to the cost for everyone else.

#4 The DMV does very little supervision of the driving school industry. Most schools get business by offering “cheap lessons” and that is what the public gets. Many schools do what is called piggy backing. This is where they pick up multiple students at the same time and each driver spends only a portion of their two hour sessions actually driving. This is specifically forbidden in the guidelines that are spelled out in the owner/operator agreement that all licensed schools enter into with the DMV. Problem is the DMV does no oversight of the schools practices and teaching methods. I had a 16 year old student who had gone to one of the many “cheap driving schools” and the instructor smoked cigarettes in the car with the student. This is against the law and the mother was livid only to be told by the DMV to fill out the complaint form on the DMV website. She did and after three months she had no response from the powers that be and that driving school is still opereating.

#5 The state of California is currently allowing millions of illegal aliens to get their drivers license. The AB60 law passed by the state legislature and signed into law by Govenor Jerry Brown took effect in January 2015. The knowledge and road sign test these people take is in their language. Big problem is that once they are out in traffic the signs are all in English. There is a good chance that a few months later a foreign speaking recently licensed driver will not recall what the YIELD sign means. As a licensed driving instructor I can see everyday that more and more drivers do not know the right-of-way laws. This causes road rage, crashes and sadly injury and death.

So ridiculous and getting worse. The car companies keep adding air bags and the big push is to have all driveres insured. All good but there is no action plan to limit the crashes and make drivers skilled enough to stay out of the crash. I have implemented a superior video driver training program that helps parents and their kids learn real skillful defensive driving. It is available at www.5StarDriver.com. Please share and get the word out that the public must not count on the driving school industry and the licensing agencies to make their loved ones safe out there, 5StarDriver.com puts the tools in peoples hands to be in control of their own destiny.

Take care Isaac,

Greg