Reviews of A-1 Driving School Ltd. (Driving School)

Alice Cosette

Shockingly rude. Their computers were down and one employee tried to get me to do the written test just to know if I failed or not. The supervisor says "You can't do that. I know what you're trying to do." Like excuse me?? You just allowed a white boy to walk in and do his written test and I'm not allowed? 20 min before they closed I was told by someone at the desk that I may as well leave because they wouldn't have time for me. -2000/10 service.

Grace Brooks

The in class instructor was great! Cindy made everything seem interesting! I enjoyed my in class lessons, can't wait for my in car!!! I learnt lots of things and think that everyone on the road should take this course. Some people don't realize what they are doing wrong but with A-1 the roads will be a safer place!

Shannon M

After driving for a few years with a G1, I still didn't have the confidence to take the exit road test. That's when I signed-up for A1. In class, Gene made us feel welcome and offered thorough explanations for a variety of driving situations. In car, Sally corrected my poor driving habits constructively, and not only prepared me for my G1 exit, but for a lifetime of safe driving.

Owen Wray

Amazing instructors, Peter made it easy for my g2 test by making me understand the rules of the road and become a better driver!

stephanie lanktree

Drivers instructor called me trailer trash, and failed me without telling me. I got my g2 anyways but not impressed with this driving school.

Anne Bastien

What I can say is that the office staff was wonderful and professional to deal with. As for the instructor, that's another story. Emerald not only made my son uncomfortable, frustrated and incompetent, he flat out informed him that his friend was a better driver than him! Nothing like boosting his confidence. Well, needless to say, when I was in the vehicle, I noticed that my son was driving extremely slow and under the speed limit. Also stopping way too soon at lights and stop signs. When I questioned him, he said that was what the instructor told him to do! While driving with him, I would tell him to speed up and he would repeatedly say, Emerald be saying "whoa whoa, too fast! What are you doing?" And he was at least 10 km under the speed limit. I told him that it was wrong but since he was a professional instructor he was right... WRONG! My son was marked on the G2 road test as consistently driving too slow and stopping too soon. When I spoke to at least 5 other A1 students who had Emerald, they all consistently complained about the same thing. While in the drivers examination centre, a young woman came in and low and behold she mentioned she had taken A1 Driving but her instructor was constantly telling her to drive slower than the speed limit, and I asked her who, she said Emerald! This causes the drivers to be marked wrong on the exam! When the driver examination centre asks who was the instructor from A1 the students had, and they inform them that it is Emerald, the examiners themselves know that the drivers will consistently fail at driving the speed limit. And incorrectly stopping at intersections! Why pay a ridiculous amount of money for driving school when the instructor is not giving the students proper instruction and the drivers bureau examiners even know that he is teaching them to drive too slow. It is called impeding the flow of traffic. So, my son will redo the test with more driving experience with me (which is what the drivers bureau told him to do. Go out and drive with your mom and do what your mom tells you) since his instructions failed to meet the standards. Thanks.. and that actually comes from at least 6 of his students that we know of... A great big thank you though to the rest of the staff we dealt with. Professional, courteous and quick to get the paperwork done. I will not recommend Emerald as an instructor. We were forewarned by a number of Emerald's previous students, but we figured they may have been over exaggerating. Well they were not and lessoned learned. Find another instructor if you get him. Waste of money

Liette Laberge

From my initial call to A-1 inquiring about their services and throughout the entire process, the staff, instructors and administration have been fantastic! Arranging driving school for my 16 yr. old while away receiving cancer treatments posed some unique challenges - They were most accommodating and responsive to all my queries and requests. Thank you Lise & everyone behind the scene that make things happen. The instructors are very dedicated and diligent in preparing and educating students, they are very flexible in scheduling which is so helpful. Most of all they care about their students' success and safety. I appreciate their compassion and commitment to students (& parents) and definitely recommend them highly.

Nicholas Johnston

I highly recommend the services of A1 Driving School. Despite having a substantial amount of driving experience, I had failed my first road test for my G2. I then decided that lessons were in order, so I could be better prepared for my second attempt. After two 2-hour sessions with Peter, I took my second road test with greater confidence and improved technique, and two weeks after my first attempt and failure, I walked away having successfully obtained my license. Thank you Peter and the courteous staff at A1 for all of the help. Best St. Patrick’s Day of recent memory!

A Rosie

1st driver was terrible. Threw pens when I made mistake, said I would ruin his reputation if I didn’t pass, etc. barely learned from him/they made me pay for extra lessons. My 2nd driver was amazing!!! In class lessons were good. Not impressed to find out you have to go to Service Ontario pick up and pay again for your certificate.

Bob Sinclair

Peter is phenomenal!

Cal Alberta

I got my G1 awhile ago and was apprehensive about driving until I was 25; but with the A1 Driving Course I was able to lower my insurance to a more comfortable level and put into practice the driving habits and techniques that Gene taught in the in-class. Peter was an amazing in-car instructor that helped me build confidence and the necessary skills to challenge the G1 exit test and obtain my G2 license.

Leah Hardy

Highly recommend Sally as an instructor. She is wonderful. I was nervous about almost being 30 and never driving before, but once I got driving I felt a million times better. She is honestly the best instructor I could have ever asked for. She is very friendly, and very knowledgeable. I am stoked that I got her as my instructor, and I will be returning for refresher lessons before I go for my G. Thank you!!!!!

Kristen

I passed my road test thanks to the lessons I had with my driving instructor, Jacob. He was patient and good humored throughout the lessons and his instructions were useful and easy to understand. I'm very pleased with my experience at A1 and would recommend them to anyone who wants to improve their driving skills and prepare for their G2/G test.

Kurtis Fortin (kman82687)

I recommend Peter, his teaching and customer services skills are above and beyond the standard.

Francisco Córdova

I passed my test !!! I got my full G driver's license and it was a team effort with my instructor Jacob Van Leeuwen! I wanted to write this review so everyone would know that Jacob was an amazing instructor, very patient and with excellent teaching techniques (he has a mini whiteboard with him :) ). I wanted to thank him very much because all the feedback he gave me was very helpful not only for the test, but also for safe driving practices.

HenschelFamily

This driving school is excellent. One of the instructors, Sally, was absolutely wonderful with both of our boys.She was patient, kind, and encouraging. Sally was also willing to receive a few phone calls from me when I had questions for her. She gave them confidence to take their tests, and both passed quite easily. Thank you, Sally, for all of your great help!

edukoby

I had only 1 chance to have my G full license and thanks to A-1, I just nailed it! All staff was very friendly. Special thanks to Cindy who prepared me to my Road Test!

ernest kodua

Hey guys, I would like to recommend Peter Hoffman in A1 driving shool to any one in Northbay(instructor) and beyond. He is such an amazing and experience instructor ever existed on this earth. God bless him for the training he gave me to get my licence. # best instructor ever.

Kim Snider

Friendly, professional staff. On a side note, my daughter passed her G2 test on the first try :) Thank you!

Taylor Getty

Wonderful driving school! I had Cindy as my instructor and she is the best! She is very kind, patient, and encouraging! She made me feel very comfortable and confident for my G road test. I passed thanks to her! Your driving will improve so much after having lessons with Cindy. I highly recommend A1 driving school! Thanks so much for all your help in preparing me for the road test Cindy!

Justin Delarosbel

A-1 went out of their way to make sure my wife was prepared to do her road test. They have flexible hours for private lessons and truly care about their clients. She would not be a driver today if it were not for Cindy at A-1.

Tina Hall

Thank you so much A1 for giving me the confidence to pass my G2 road test the first time. Thanks to Emerald for the great inclass and an especially big thank you to Glenn for the awesome in car lessons.

Carly Paul

Very informative in class sessions, and a very knowledgeable in car instructor, who confidently prepared me for my road test and driving in all seasons. Very pleased with the service and would definitely recommend to any new driver.

darian gleave

I had an awesome experience at a1 driving, the instructors were very nice and helpful. I would definitely recommend this driving school for anyone interested.

Junyang Bao

I’m being generous with my 1 star rating. Class was boring, I had a bad experience with my driving instructor I asked if I could get a different instructor since they say they have 7 on their site They told me no, had to stick with him Finished the course but did not feel ready to go pass my road test so I went to different school for private lessons and it was a total different experience and manage to feel good and safe and pass my road test. Do your homework and talk to others.

hele anoky

Hi,I'm hele, I live in Toronto and I've heard of Peter Hoffman of A1 driving school in Nortbay Ontario. God bless him for his experience as an instructor.

Riley McCaig

Very professinal and informative, Jacob, my driving instructor gave very clear instructions, and ensured that I thoroughly understood all of the important concepts of safe driving.