LPOD Academy Reviews 72

Great! Made driving seem simple and achievable. Knows how to prepare you mentally, I passed first time after only having 27 hours worth of lessons. Thank you!

Terrible experience. Once they have your money, they simply wash their hands of you.

Daughter had a really terrible experience - we were mis-sold from the start - she wanted a female instructor, and we were told by the salesperson ‘of course, just let us know when you book’ - of course, this didn’t happen - LPOD even went so far as to tell us it would be discriminatory to request it. By this point they had our money.

We were allocated a male instructor, all went OK for a trial lesson, but on the morning of the intensive course, the guy simply didnt show and went radio silent. LPOD did nothing to help.

We finally got hold of the instructor, rescheduled the intensive course (and test!). Several weeks prior to the course, we received a text message telling us that he had sadly died. LPOD washed their hands of the situation, promised they would be in touch. This was somewhere in the region of 18-24 months ago. We never heard from them again.

We’ve lost a large sum of money, with no help or support from LPOD. Avoid at all costs would be my advice.

Rebecca was an amazing driving instructor and just a lovely woman in general. In the short space of time she was my
instructor she taught me loads, not only that she boosted my confidence 100%. She lovely and i will recommend her to everyone.

Was everything I hoped it would be and more. Passed first try with 3 minors so if considering doing an intensive I definitely recommend.

LPOD and my instructor Becky worked with me to get me a test and from square 1 to passing first try within my timeframe. Becky was especially amazing and made it really enjoyable while helping me make the most out of the time. I started on a 35 hr course, with private practice where I could, and then added 10hrs to iron out the last wrinkles in the days before. Worked amazingly and I passed on my first attempt. So thrilled and loving the freedom driving has immediately brought me. So thankful to Becky and LPOD for everything.

From the first call with LPOD to the moment I got my pass certificate, everything went smoothly. My instructor, Pete, was calm, clear, and focused. I took a 10-hour course after a break from driving, and it was just what I needed to get over the finish line.

They were great at getting the theory done for me. After many failed attempts, I had thought that was it and not want to continue, but their course was sound 👍

Just finished a 20 hour crash driver course. Got done with only 2 minors

Five-star experience - no comment

After struggling with a previous driving company, LPOD paired me with Mike, an outstanding instructor. He was patient, adaptable teaching style was exactly what I needed. Following previous disappointments, I finally passed my test thanks to his dedicated support. Highly recommend if you're learning in Leicester

Do not go with LPOD unless you want to lose your money. I bought the 20 hour course for £1205 and went with an instructor called Becky. She only turned up to the first two days (2 x 4 hours), skipped the third one, and then when it came time for my test she crashed her car twice and still hasn’t refunded the 12 remaining hours Over a year and a half later despite saying she was just waiting on the insurance claim to go through. When emailed about the situation LPOD were unapologetic, unsympathetic, and acted as if I was at fault. Don’t waste your money, it’s a scam. Go with RED driving school instead.

Don’t go near this bunch of clowns.

This is basically online theft all wrapped up to look pretty.
Please don’t waste your efforts and your money with this crowd.
Read the negative reviews on this page and keep walking. Go to a reputable supplier of intensive driving courses.

They promise the world, but once they have your money they disappear.

This is just a rip off.

Awful company. Please don’t waste your money. Can’t get hold of anyone over the phone. Promised to find a test near the end of the course which didn’t happen. The driver instructor appointed cancelled several times at short notice and the car he had wasn’t up to scratch either. It made a funny noise and I found it very off putting. Have asked about money back without response

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 Stars
I had a great experience with LPOD Academy! The whole process was fast, friendly, and super efficient. From booking to passing my test, everything ran smoothly. My instructor was reliable and made me feel confident behind the wheel. I’d definitely recommend LPOD Academy to anyone looking for a professional and stress-free way to learn to drive.

Overall, I have had a terrible experience with this company.

The main issue was with the driving instructor that they allocated me in Cornwall and LPODs lack of care about whether they found a good instructor or not.

Alarm bells rang when the instructor LPOD linked me with did not reply to my messages or emails for several weeks. LPOD chased him up. It took two months to actually organise lessons with him. The driving instructor also went against the procedures for payment that LPOD described, asking for cash upfront before any lessons were confirmed, and insisting on cash only because they didn't have a bank account. This rang alarm bells, and was also tricky as they didn't live nearby. Myself and my family then found some terrible reviews of the driving instructor online, saying that he had 'unconventional methods', was unreliable, and turned up with hangovers to lessons or not at all. I was worried about the lack of a business bank account and the reviews, and told LPOD so, but LPOD refused to look for an alternative instructor or to let me know about his credentials and success rate to reassure me. Next, the instructor asked me to transfer full payment upfront to an unknown person (his girlfriend, apparently), as he had no bank account. Due to pressure from LPOD I did this, even though it took a whole day of communication with my bank as they thought this was a scam.

Now on to the lessons. I tried to make the best of them, as he did turn up on the first day. But they were not good and I ended up feeling very stressed during them due to the instructor's teaching methods and to feel panicked about driving for a while afterwards. Firstly, he insisted on calling me the wrong name, and was quite sexist and patronising, and said very controlling things constantly, repeating "Nicky does what David says". It was very odd, but I didn't react and just focused on learning to drive. I felt quite demeaned. He would often take over driving without warning, making me wonder where the clutch had gone (when there was no need to), and wouldn't explain how to do things, but would just say just "do what David says". He span out the lessons so that the learning was very slow, as I think he wanted more money. He always turned up on time, but insisted on 30 minute breaks in the middle of each lesson and brought me home early each week. I paid for an extra week's of lessons with him, but he didn't give me all the lessons I paid for, saying he had had a "senior moment" and had double booked himself. I had paid in cash for these extra lessons and had no receipt.

David then disappeared. When my test was due he went missing, so I couldn't do the test in his car. I was due to have my test and to have a couple more lessons in advance, but David stopped communicating. Communication throughout was difficult and sporadic, sometimes without replies. I ended up having to cancel my test. David replied the following week and said that I must have missed his messages, but this wasn't the case. Even though David still owed me £300 worth of lessons I decided not to have any more lessons with him. I felt relief because I found the experience very difficult.

LPOD did not seem to mind that I had had a difficult experience with David or take any responsibility for finding me a reliable instructor.

They eventually booked me another driving test, but this took months.

It is hard to explain, but I found the lack of care upsetting - LPOD were not concerned about finding a good instructor - just any old instructor. That meant they had done what their terms and conditions outlined, and that was that. The instructors' poor professional standards were clear from the outset, from his online reviews, poor communication and payment requests, but they still insisted that he was the only option. The instructor, sadly, was poor and unreliable, and also had unacceptable teaching methods, controlling behaviours and language.

I have not passed my test since the instructor disappeared and I had no instruction or car to take the test in.

One further thing to note is that LPODs training manuals for the theory tests have errors in them - e.g., about timings for using your horn - so be careful.

The company might work fine if you are lucky enough to be given a good instructor - but be careful because this is not guaranteed and they don't seem to care about professional standards and quality of their instructors (at least not in my case) - just getting their money upfront and meeting their basic requirements.

Spent £970 with this company to have all tests cancelled and NO reply from the driving instructor.
The next time i contacted them they had "deleted" all my information and "wont be able to assist with any refunds at this time"

Waiting for reply, disgusting.

Rebecca really went above and beyond and helped and a few hours of lessons and we passed..

Thank you so much to Rebecca ❤️

I contacted LPOD last minute about a driving test I had booked and needed an instructor. Without hesitation Rebecca was more than happy to help me. Literally the next day we did some hours driving and the following day passed my test! Such a laid back and comforting person who just makes you feel relaxed and not rushed at all. Very informative and makes sure that you understand before moving onto the next step. Would 100% recommend. And thankyou so much for your help.

They help me get the theory test. Questions at the end were nice and asy to read.

Everything was organised and booked with my given time frame and was able to start lessons earlier than I thought.

I should have trusted my instincts and stayed away at from this company. You pay them roughly £500 and then the rest direct to the instructor you are allocated. In my situation this was £800. This instructor cancelled my course 4 times, using various excuses as to why it couldn’t be done. This went on for 6 months. Turned out this instructor, although registered with the DVSA, has a history of doing this scam and I’m trying to get my money back. LPod are not interested in customer care once you’ve paid over your money.

They take days to respond to emails and there’s no phone number - you can’t speak to anyone if you have a problem. They obviously have no checks on who they use as instructors. I wish I’d never heard of them. STAY WELL CLEAR THEY ARE COWBOYS.