You've found an instructor, the price sounds reasonable, and you're ready to hand over your card details. Stop there. Two minutes of checking now can save you weeks of hassle and a stack of money later.
Ireland's learner system is well-structured, but that structure only protects you if you use it properly. The RSA puts more than 2,700 approved driving instructors on record, and the vast majority are legitimate professionals. A small number are not. Knowing how to tell the difference before your first lesson is the whole job here.
Check the ADI Register First. Every Time.
This is not optional. By law, anyone delivering driving lessons in Ireland must be on the RSA's register of Approved Driving Instructors and hold a valid permit. It doesn't matter how many five-star reviews they have online. If they're not on the register, lessons with them count for nothing toward your Essential Driver Training.
The RSA has a free online search tool. You pick your licence category and location, then search by name, company name or ADI number. Takes two minutes. If your instructor isn't there, walk away. The RSA's own guidance is plain on this: learn to drive only with an ADI.
Also worth knowing: ADIs must renew their registration every two years, which includes passing a check test on their driving and teaching. So someone who was registered last year may not be this year. Check the register close to when you actually book, not six months before.
If you need any special accommodation during lessons, the same RSA search page links to a separate list of ADIs who cater for learners with specific needs.
One more thing to look for on the register listing: a Q-Mark next to the instructor's details. That means they've signed up to the RSA and ADI Stakeholders Forum's voluntary code of practice. It's not a guarantee of quality, but it's a signal that they've at least committed to a standard.
Understand What EDT Actually Is
Essential Driver Training is 12 one-hour sessions, each covering a specific topic in a set order: car controls and safety checks, correct positioning, changing direction, speed management, sharing the road, night driving and more. The full list runs from session 1 through to session 12, and you need all of them completed before you can sit your driving test.
There is a reduced version: 6 sessions instead of 12. That applies if you hold a full foreign driving licence you can't exchange, have held it for at least two years, it expired less than six months before you apply, you live in Ireland and you hold an Irish learner permit. If that's not you, you need all 12.
Critically, only a currently approved ADI can deliver these sessions. If your instructor's registration lapses mid-way through your EDT and their sessions haven't been recorded properly, you could be in a difficult position.
Which brings us to the logbook.
The Logbook and MyEDT: Don't Let Either Slide
Your ADI gives you a physical logbook where sessions and your progress are recorded. Sessions are also logged online through the RSA's MyEDT portal. Both should stay up to date as you go.
The RSA's own advice is to check at the start of each lesson which session number is being covered. That's not bureaucratic fussing. It's protection against any confusion or miscommunication about which sessions have been completed.
If your instructor leaves the register and completed training hasn't been uploaded to MyEDT, the RSA's guidance is to contact that instructor directly. That's a situation you want to avoid entirely. Keep your logbook, check your MyEDT account after each session and raise it immediately if something doesn't match.
Understand What You're Paying For
The RSA does not set the price of EDT lessons. What instructors charge varies, and it's entirely unregulated on the pricing side. If you want a sense of what driving lessons cost in your area before you commit, check around before signing up for a block.
Speaking of blocks: be careful with pre-paid packages. Paying upfront for a bundle of lessons is common and can save money, but only if the cancellation terms are fair. Before you pay anything, ask the following directly.
What happens if you need to cancel a lesson? Is there a notice period? What's the refund policy on unused lessons if you decide to stop?
The CCPC is clear that a business must not pressure consumers or put unreasonable obstacles in the way when they want to cancel a service. If you book online or over the phone (a distance contract), you may have a 14-day cancellation right under the Consumer Rights Act 2022, though if the service has already started, you'd still pay for sessions delivered. If the instructor or business never told you about your cancellation rights, that window can extend by up to 12 months.
Get cancellation terms in writing before you pay. If the instructor waves it off as unnecessary, that's information worth having.
Red Flags Worth Knowing
A few things should give you pause before booking.
Pressure to pay a large block upfront before you've even met the instructor. No clear cancellation policy. An instructor who can't tell you their ADI number or gets vague when you mention the RSA register. A MyEDT account they've never mentioned. Any claim that sessions can be done in a car that isn't a category B vehicle (car or light van) for a standard car licence.
Also: the RSA's guidance is that you generally can't sit the driving test until at least six months after getting your first learner permit, with some exceptions. If someone is promising a fast-track to your test in a way that sounds too convenient, check the official rules first.
A Final Word on Picking Your Instructor
Beyond the checklist, the working relationship matters. You'll spend 12 hours minimum in close quarters with this person, learning something that makes most people anxious. The instructor's manner, patience and ability to explain things in plain terms counts for a lot.
Meet them, or at least have a proper conversation, before you commit to a block of sessions. A good ADI will welcome the questions. If they don't, that tells you something too.
You started this with a card in your hand and an instructor in mind. Run the checklist first, then pay.
