BSM Avis 

If I could give Annette infinite stars, I genuinely would! 🤍✨ I passed my manual driving test yesterday at Belvedere, and I honestly couldn’t have asked for a better instructor. Annette is such a lovely, patient, friendly and understanding person who made me feel so comfortable and confident behind the wheel from the very beginning.
She has an amazing way of explaining everything, especially manoeuvres, making them so simple and easy to understand. She never made me feel stressed or pressured and was always so supportive, encouraging and helpful throughout my lessons.
Not only is she an incredible driving instructor, but she is also such a genuinely lovely person who makes learning to drive an enjoyable experience. I always felt at ease with her and I’m so grateful for everything she has taught me.
I would 110% recommend Annette to all my family, friends and absolutely anyone looking for a driving instructor. She truly is the best out there and I couldn’t have done it without her! Thank you so much, Annette! 🤍😊🚗

Juliana, thank you for the support and encouragement during the lessons and thank you for the understandings during hard times during said lessons. Many blessings to your future students. May they successfully pass with your guidance.

Anthony Boyle was my instructor he’s very easy to talk to and has great knowledge and understanding on how to past the test we all dread. The man treats you like a friend and helped me out massively when I couldn’t make lessons and needed to rearrange. He’s my third and final instructor I’ve been with and is by the best would recommend using him and will be to my family and friends.

Daniel Bradley was an amazing instructor. Full knowledge and extremely helpful driving techniques. Also very supportive when it comes to advice and so open to any additional details such as dropping and picking up at different location. Super kind and respectful.Couldn't have done it without him. A huge thank you Dan !!

Passed second time with instructor Damir Vujevic. Really supportive, a great teacher and helped me to rebuild my confidence after failing first time. He was always patient and explained everything very clearly. Would recommend!

My experience with driving instructor Ian Pennington has been exceptionally disappointing and has left me questioning the standards of professionalism and customer care demonstrated throughout our dealings.

I booked and paid in advance for driving tuition and arrangements relating to my practical driving test on Monday, 26 October 2026.

The arrangements were confirmed in writing, including the agreed hourly rate of £45 and the time allocated for my test.

At approximately 10:30pm on the evening before my practical test, Ian informed me that he did not believe I was ready and would not be taking me.

I do not dispute an instructor’s right to make an appropriate safety assessment. However, there is a significant difference between exercising professional judgement responsibly and informing a paying customer of such a decision at a point when arranging an alternative is virtually impossible.

What I find particularly concerning is that, having travelled to our agreed meeting point the following morning, I was subsequently informed that Ian was conducting another driving lesson.

Given that this was during the period previously reserved for my booking, I believe it is entirely reasonable to question when the alternative arrangement was made and why I was not informed earlier.

Despite not providing the agreed three hours of services that morning, the £135 prepaid for that period has not been returned.

A further 30 minutes of prepaid tuition was not delivered during the previous day’s lesson, representing another £22.50.

In addition, I incurred £70 in transport expenses, lost my practical test booking fee and now face the cost of retaking my theory test because my certificate has expired.

The total financial loss I am seeking to recover is £312.50.

Beyond the financial consequences, the experience has caused considerable disruption to my driving test plans and undermined my confidence in the professionalism of the service provided.

I have retained written confirmation of the booking, correspondence regarding the cancellation and subsequent messages. I am submitting a formal complaint to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency and pursuing reimbursement through the appropriate legal channels.

My principal concern is the apparent lack of accountability for prepaid services that were not delivered and the handling of a time-sensitive booking on which I had reasonably relied.

Learner drivers invest significant time, money and effort in preparing for practical examinations. They deserve clear communication, fair treatment and professionalism from the instructors entrusted with helping them.

Based on my experience, I cannot recommend Ian Pennington.

I would strongly encourage prospective customers to obtain clear written confirmation of cancellation arrangements, refund terms and the circumstances in which an instructor may withdraw their vehicle from a practical test before making any advance payment.

It was so easy to work with Mohamed. He was patient, explains instructions clearly and makes sure you are more than ready for your test The lesson booking service is also effortless and very accommodating. Definitely recommend!

I had a very upsetting experience with this driving instructor: James Potter (Hayes), and after only three lessons, I have been left feeling so anxious and discouraged about learning to drive that I no longer feel comfortable continuing with him.

Throughout my lessons, I felt that he became frustrated with me very easily, raised his voice and shouted at me rather than calmly explaining what I was doing wrong. One example was when he told me to press the accelerator. I immediately began moving my foot over to the pedal, but before I had even had the chance to press it, he shouted, “I said press the gas!” I was trying to follow his instructions, but I felt rushed and as though I wasn’t being given time to process what he was asking me to do.

During my third lesson, he told me that I should already be on the roads by that point and that I needed to have a chat with my parents about whether learning to drive was the right option for me. He said he felt I would be wasting money because we would just keep practising the same things. I found this incredibly discouraging, especially as I was only three lessons into learning.

I went into lessons fully aware that I might take longer than other learners. I had already anticipated that I might need around 50 hours of lessons before being ready for my test, and I was more than willing to put in the time, effort and money to learn properly. I never expected to be perfect after three lessons, and I thought an instructor’s job was to teach, guide and help learners improve at their own pace.

Another particularly concerning incident was when he demonstrated my driving by slamming on the brake, which caused me to jolt forward and hurt my neck. I did not believe I had been braking anywhere near as harshly as he demonstrated. He also showed me how to steer by moving the car around on the road, which I felt did not fairly represent how I had been driving. I did not believe I had been swerving all over the road, and on one occasion, when the car was positioned on the other side of the road, I was going to correct myself but was told to stop before I had the opportunity to do so.

What made the experience even more discouraging was that, during my very first lesson, he told me that he could tell whether people were going to pass or not. After the way I was spoken to during my third lesson, this comment has stuck with me and made me feel even more judged.

I understand that driving is a serious responsibility and that instructors need to correct mistakes, especially when safety is involved. However, there is a difference between correcting someone constructively and shouting at them, becoming visibly annoyed and suggesting they reconsider learning altogether after only three lessons. I then messaged him saying “me and my parents think it’s best I don’t continue my lessons” and he replied and said “Appreciate your decision, sorry I couldn’t help”, in my opinion you didn’t want to help me and wouldn’t even try.

A nervous beginner needs patience, clear explanations and encouragement to build confidence. Instead, I left my lessons feeling upset, anxious and as though I was incapable of learning to drive. This experience has affected my confidence so much that I now feel frightened about trying with another instructor.

I am extremely disappointed with this experience. I went into lessons wanting to learn, improve and become a safe driver. I was prepared to put in however many hours it took, but I did not feel supported or encouraged.

In my opinion, the way I was treated was unprofessional and unnecessarily discouraging. I hope other learners, particularly those who are nervous or need more time to learn, find an instructor who is patient, respectful and willing to help them build their confidence rather than making them question whether they should be learning at all.

Just passed in Ipswich thanks to my instructor Daniel Bradley who is an excellent person to have teaching me, he’s very patient and helpful getting you confident driving and ensuring that you’re fully prepared for your test.

I had Sherrif as my driving instructor he ensured all my bad habits were gone before my test. He taught me amazing I took lessons from other companies but would never recommend elsewhere and anyone else Sherrif was amazing and so fortunate to have had him as my instructor passed with only 1 minor. Thank you Sherrif

Passed first time in Farnborough with Damir Vujevic, excellent teacher and helped me feel confident on the road. Could not him recommend more.

Waheed Borhanzadeh is a fantastic driving instructor. He made me feel so at ease and was incredibly patient. I passed first time and would not have been able to without his brilliant teaching style. Would 1000% recommend Waheed at BSM to anyone starting out on their driving journey!

Ferhat was a great instructor and got me pass ready for my first ever test and was mostly around the E8 area and Tottenham

I passed my test at Belvedere thanks to Naomi Oben!
Thanks to Naomi‘s natural teaching ability as well as her unwavering support and encouragement, my confidence grew to the point where I felt that I could drive safely on the roads independently. This is something I felt was almost impossible prior to learning with her. She is exceptionally thorough and consistently worked to find ways to explain things to me to ensure I understood and could put them into practice. She was also able to pinpoint areas for improvement, enabling me to develop and progress onto the next stages of my learning knowing that I had crossed one hurdle by ironing out issues and could overcome the others.

The lessons have been incredibly valuable and this has been such a huge relief for me! I 100% recommend and couldn’t be more grateful!

My instructor Mario Trapasso was brilliant! I went through different instructors through BSM and he was the best out of them all.
He has a calm aura and explains everything to you to perfection. He will help you with reference points and he’s always available if you need anything before the next lesson.
He will let you ask a thousand questions if needed and give you good advice to calm down your nerves. Will recommend him to everyone, i passed on the first go

I had Damir as my instructor. I am so grateful for how much he helped me. He always had confidence in my ability, even when I didn’t. Damir was very polite, and understanding. He was flexible with lesson times, and we always discussed the lesson at the end, for what went well, and what could be improved.

★★★★★ Passed First Time with Mario – Highly Recommended!

I’m absolutely delighted to have passed my driving test today on my very first attempt, all thanks to my fantastic instructor, Mario, from BSM!

I learned to drive an automatic car with Mario, and I honestly couldn’t have asked for a better instructor. From day one, he was incredibly patient, professional, friendly and supportive.

Mario has a brilliant way of explaining things clearly and making you feel comfortable and confident behind the wheel. Whenever I made mistakes, he remained calm, explained what I needed to improve and helped me become a better driver.

What I appreciated most was that Mario didn’t just prepare me to pass my driving test; he taught me how to drive safely and confidently in everyday situations.

I’m genuinely grateful for all his patience, encouragement and hard work throughout my lessons.

If you're looking for an excellent automatic driving instructor at BSM, I cannot recommend Mario enough!

Thank you so much, Mario!

My instructor was Travis Joseph from bsm, he was a great instructor, very patient, and really supportive. I would definitely recommend for new drivers as I passed mine with one minor!

I wholeheartedly recommend Mario Trapasso to any student from the Manchester area wanting to earn their automatic driving licence and wanting to pass first time.

He made me feel at ease during my lessons. I quickly gained confidence learning under him and would not have passed first time if I had a different instructor. I suffer with anxiety and struggle to understand some explanations of things especially when I’m flustered but his teaching style really helped me believe in myself. I even travelled back to his catchment area when I moved during my lessons because I didn’t want to lose the progress I had made by switching instructors.

Thank you to Mario for helping me achieve this important milestone!

Travis was an absolutely amazing instructor. He was the reason I passed first time. Couldn’t be happier.