Q&A: Does RED Driving School Franchise in the UK?

Do you have a passion for driving? Attracted by the flexibility of being your own boss? In this article, we find out if you can start your own RED Driving School franchise unit in the UK.

Becky Martin, writer

Published at 19/06/2019, Updated on 06/06/2023 , Reading time: 6 min

Learning to drive is an essential life skill and, in order to ensure the safety of yourself and others, it is important to receive lessons from an instructor you can trust. RED is one of the largest driving schools that provides an exceptional quality of service in the UK. For this and many other reasons, it was voted the best National Driving School of the Year in 2018. But can you start a RED Driving School franchise unit in the UK?

Does RED Driving School franchise in the UK?

Yes, you can! If you are an Approved Driving Instructor (ADI) and you’re thinking of joining a driving school franchise, RED is a great option to consider.

There is an impressive level of customer satisfaction, as is demonstrated by the heaps of positive reviews. Also, over 80 percent of its customers pay in advance, which means that the franchise collects lesson fees on the driver’s behalf. This eliminates the need for any concerns regarding not getting paid, negotiating on prices or students not showing up.

The average prepaid customer books approximately eight hours at a time and takes around 30 lessons in total.

How Does the RED Driving School Franchise Work?

The RED Driving School franchise model is designed to help businesses grow and open more job opportunities for individuals. Trainees pay the franchisor to become driving instructors. The franchise is given to individuals who have cleared at least the second of the three DVSA driving tests. Once an individual becomes an instructor with RED driving school, the training fees are refunded.

Every week the franchisee pays a fee to RED DQ1riving School for the service they provide, including a RED-branded training vehicle. They also pay a small fee for new student introductions. This fee is variable. The student money is handed over to the instructor, so the more the instructor works, the better their earnings.

This is a great business model that helps RED instructors strike the perfect balance between their work and personal life.

Starting a RED Driving School franchise unit

Below we provide a complete overview of the franchise opportunity to help you decide if it’s the best business decision for you.

Becoming a RED Driving School franchisee

Train to become a driving instructor

If you’re attracted to the rewarding nature of being a driving instructor or you simply fancy a career change, RED provides a driver training scheme. So far, the large company has trained over 10,000 people. The full training course costs £2,599 as a one-off payment, and there is the chance to get a refund on the training fees too.

Or, if you would prefer, you can pay for the course monthly, at £199 a month. Once you have completed the training and joined RED as a franchisee for a qualifying period, RED will refund your training fees up to a maximum of £2,599.

This includes up to 80 hours of one-to-one training with a specialist Instructor Trainer for those who join the course on a Trainee Licence. You can also use RED’s vehicles in the training sessions, receive support from training advisors, have access to online training systems and much more.

Do you want to use your own car?

One of the main decisions you need to make is whether you want to use your own car or a RED car. The Full Franchise route includes a car that named family members can drive if it is cleared with RED.

If you already own a training car that is suitable, you can opt to take the Brand Franchise route, which costs £95 a week. However, if you want to benefit from RED’s exclusive car deals with Renault, the franchise can help you get a brand-new Clio. RED’s exclusive arrangement with Renault allows you to benefit from one of the best deals in the industry.

In order to find out more about start-up deals, RED encourages you to speak to a franchise specialist on the phone or enquire online. All of the contact details are on its website.

How much you need to invest

As we mentioned, if you choose the Brand Franchise route you will need to pay £95 a week. It doesn’t say on the website what the franchise costs and fees are for the Full Franchise route, so we would recommend getting in contact with the franchise directly.

Total Earnings With RED Driving School

The earnings with RED Driving School will depend on the number of hours you put in. Considering most drivers put in about 30.5 hours a week, they can earn about £875.3 per week. The average hourly rate is £28.89. The yearly income over a 50-workweek period will be about £43,768.50.

In addition, 29% of driving instructors who add a little more hours to their work week can earn a gross annual income of £50,000 or more. It should be noted that the net weekly take-home pay will be a little lower as there will be tax involved.

What you get for your investment

If you decide to become a RED franchisee, you will attend a two-day business seminar that will equip you with all the skills you need to become a successful business manager. At this stage, RED assumes you already know how to be a knowledgeable and efficient driving instructor, so this doesn’t need to be covered in the seminar.
There is also a handy online diary system that you will have access to, which makes it easy for you and the Contact Centre to manage bookings.
On top of this, you can make the most of free marketing materials like posters, leaflets and business cards. RED also advertises on Google and the other main search engines and has a strong social media presence on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. This helps bring plenty of potential business opportunities to you.
The Instructor Services team has over 200 years of experience in the industry, with many of the members of the team being ADIs, who are on hand to provide ongoing support.
To help you establish a professional and recognisable identity, the franchise provides a range of RED-branded clothing. And the company has connections with Halfords, Auto Trader, RAC, NHS, NUS and many more.

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Support and Training Offered by RED Driving School

RED Driving School ensures all trainees get complete guidance and support. They’re trained only under experienced trainers, who not only help educate them on the business but also on certain skills required for the business to grow.

There are various benefits of training with RED. The most prominent benefit is the ability to train at flexible hours based on your schedule. The course is about 80 hours of training assisted by a qualified RED trainer. The vehicle is provided by RED, and there’s complete health and in-house support along with over-the-phone assistance.

RED also offers online training along with state-of-the-art hazard perception systems. This helps prepare trainers for anything that might come their way. Once the training is complete, RED also offers you the opportunity to earn with full business support so that you can begin an ongoing career.

Start a driving school franchise today

RED Driving School is one of the big names in the UK driving school industry and offers a fantastic investment opportunity. Check its website for all the latest franchise information, including any special offers. If you’ve not made up your mind just yet, consider the top driving school franchises in the UK.