At SafeWay Driving, we are passionate about making the roads a safer place. And safe drivers mean safer roads! After 50 years in business, we know that high-quality instructors are vital to a student driver's success on the roads.
Instructors teach the skills needed to drive safely and lawfully, and they also actively ensure students stay safe and avoid accidents during lessons. That's a big responsibility! So, what qualifies someone for this important role?
Up to this point, the State of Texas has required a minimum of 90 training hours for a person to become a licensed driving instructor. We know how important this training is and we even have instructors with 225 training hours!
But starting June 1 2023, that law changed.
The new law requires ZERO hours of training to become a licensed driving instructor. As long as someone passes a background check, they can become an instructor. This means there will now be driving schools with instructors who have ZERO training or experience driving teens.
We want you to know that even with this new law, SafeWay Driving will continue having our instructors undergo rigorous in-car training. This training is mandatory for all SafeWay Driving instructors to teach our proprietary curriculum, which we have been teaching for over 50 years, to more than 275,000 students! We promise you that at SafeWay, your teen will NEVER get in the car with anyone that isn't highly trained and capable.
We take driver training and road safety very seriously, and we are not willing to cut any corners in our mission to make the roads safer for you and your family.
If you want to team up with the best driving school with the highest trained instructors feel free to click on one of the training tabs at the top of the website. We look forward to teaching you how to Drive The SafeWay!
We have included the law below so you can read it for yourself…
"Texas Administrative Code, §84.44 Driver Education Instructor License
(a) An application for licensure as a driver education instructor must be made on forms prescribed by the department and be accompanied by the appropriate fees. A license application is valid for one year from the date it is filed with the department. A person applying for an original driver education instructor license must:
(1) hold a valid class A, B, C, or CDL driver's license, other than a learner license or provisional license, for the preceding three years, that has not been revoked or suspended in the preceding three years;
(2) submit completed application, a non-refundable application fee as prescribed by the Dept.
(3) submit the instructor licensing fees;
(4) submit a national criminal history record information review fee; and
(5) provide fingerprints to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) through the IdentoGo Fingerprint Service or any other method required by the DPS.
(b) A driver education instructor may perform instruction and administration of the classroom and in-car phases of driver education, as prescribed in the POI-DE, and the classroom phase of the POI-Adult Six-Hour.
(c) An application for renewal of a driver education instructor license must be submitted on forms prescribed by the department. A complete renewal application must include following:
(1) the renewal fee;
(2) provide a valid driver license record that meets the requirements stated in §84.44(a)(1); and
(3) if selected for audit, proof of successful completion of at least two hours of continuing
education credit during the license renewal period relating to driver education, driving safety, and instructional techniques.
(d) The department will employ an audit system for reporting completion of continuing education. The licensee is responsible for maintaining a record of the licensee's continuing education experiences. The certificates, transcripts, or other documentation verifying the completion of continuing education hours must not be forwarded to the department at the time of renewal unless the department has selected the licensee for audit.
(e) The audit process for continuing education will be as follows:
(1) The department will select for audit a random sample of licensees for each renewal period.
Licensees will be notified of the continuing education audit when they receive their renewal
documentation.
(2) If selected for an audit, the licensee must submit copies of certificates, transcripts, or other documentation satisfactory to the department, verifying the licensee's attendance,
participation, and completion of the continuing education. All documentation must be provided at the time of the renewal.
(3) Failure to timely furnish documentation or providing false information during the audit
process or renewal process are grounds for disciplinary action against the licensee.
(f) An applicant for a driver education instructor license or its renewal must successfully pass a criminal history background check."