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Accompanied driving - Driving licence

Accompanied driving (AD) was introduced in Luxembourg with a view to enabling learners to perfect their driver training outside of a school of motoring. It also enables the learner to drive for months on end and therefore gain as much experience as possible without any additional fees.
 

 


How accompanied driving works

AD works alongside traditional driving lessons provided by a school of motoring and can benefit all learners over the age of 17, including, therefore, elderly drivers. Such drivers must, however, meet the following three conditions:

  • not driving outside of Luxembourg 
  • not driving between the hours of 11pm and 6am 
  • only driving category B vehicles.





Having passed the theory exam the learner will then receive practical training from a school of motoring, amounting to at least 12 one-hour lessons, before continuing their training by driving under the watchful eye of their accompanying driver. The latter must have obtained a permit from the Ministry of Transport beforehand, allowing them to accompany a learner driver. The company insuring the vehicle must also have provided a certificate (amendment) certifying that, in the event of an accident, any damage caused to a third party is covered by the third party motor insurance policy in question. There is no charge for this amendment.

The vehicle used for the AD must be of the sort covered by a category B driving licence. A special 20 x 13cm sign depicting a white letter L on a red background must be affixed to the rear of the vehicle to indicate to other road-users that the car is being driven by a learner driver in the framework of the AD scheme. The vehicle must also be fitted with two inside rear-view mirrors.

 


Who can be an accompanied driver?

The accompanying driver can be either a member of the learner driver’s family (father, mother, uncle, cousin, etc.) or a close friend. They must have held their own category B licence for more than 6 years and must be able to show that they have not been found guilty of breaching any aspects of the highway code or had their licence taken away at any point in the past 5 years. Furthermore, the accompanying driver must have sat in on at least 2 of the learner driver in question’s practical lessons with the instructor from the school of motoring.



  

The accompanying driver's role

This is an extremely important instructive role. The accompanying driver will have practical driving experience and immediately recognise certain dangerous situations that the learner is not yet able to detect. Since the learner driver will not yet have fully developed their awareness of real danger, the accompanying driver’s expertise is primarily required to compensate for this shortcoming.

The accompanying driver is considered to be the sole driver of the car, meaning that they will be held solely responsible should the need arise. Since the accompanying driver will not have dual controls (steering wheel, brake, etc.) or, therefore, be able to intervene directly in the driving of the vehicle, they must be able to rely entirely on the relationship of trust that they have established with the learner driver.
 

 
Additional classes

A category B driving licence is valid only for 2 years, meaning that the holder is considered to be in training for this period, during which they will be required to undergo an additional one-day practical training course at the Centre de Formation pour Conducteurs driver training centre in Colmar-Berg.

Drivers can access this course at least 3 months after they have obtained their licence. The training provided is designed to make novice drivers aware of how hard it can be to keep a vehicle safely on the road, especially in unfavourable conditions. The novice driver is consequently required to demonstrate due care and adopt a defensive style of driving. Exercises therefore focus on driving on icy roads, emergency braking, aquaplaning, etc.

The certificate of participation awarded at the end of the course entitles the holder to a new licence