The freedom that comes with driving your own car can come only after taking an extensive driving course and passing all the driving tests. There are some European countries that allow the new drivers to learn how to drive without attending a driving school (similar as in US), but such is not the case here, in driving school in Riga, Latvia.
Preparing for receiving your driver’s licence comes out to a hefty sum, which means that finding a good and reliable driving school is the first step you need to take. Most importantly, be sure that you are starting your driving courses for the right reasons. If your motivation is “all my friends are getting a driver’s licence”, you may end up not finishing your courses, losing money and time.
The location of the driving school also makes a difference. If it is not near your daily route, or at least in the vicinity of it, you may face a lot of temptation to skip a class or two. Note that nowadays you must have full attendance in order to be able to take the exam in theory!
There are a lot of friendly, forth-coming and sociable driving instructors out there, whose primary interest is to give you the best knowledge for becoming a safe and confident driver. Unfortunately, just like in any other walk of life, you may not get along with the instructor you have initially chosen. It is no reason to drop the courses! Your driving school is not allowed to force you to stick to one specific instructor, or even their school when it comes to driving courses! You may choose freely who you want to take your driving lessons with – the law says so!
Before committing to a driving school, do not hesitate to browse through reviews of the school, the educators and instructors. After all, it is your time and money you are about to invest. The success rate of the students that have passed tests with the first go (you can find it on CSDD website) is also a good indicator.
Beware of making your choices based only on financial aspect. There are many driving schools that choose lowly tactics, attracting the new drivers with unheard-of low prices. There is always a catch – either they look to “tie” you to the school (going against the law of giving you free choice), the courses are low quality or they look to cut corners with driving (or even asking you cash without giving you receipts).