Driving tips for supervisors
Preparing to be a supervisor
Before you get in the passenger seat
A supervisor of a learner driver can be an accredited driver trainer or a person who meets the supervisor criteria.
To supervise your learner driver, you must:
- hold a current open licence for the class of vehicle your learner driver will drive, and have held an open licence for this class for at least 1 year
- ensure that your licence isn’t expired, suspended or cancelled
- when supervising you must not have a blood or breath alcohol concentration (BAC) of equal to or more than 0.05. We strongly recommend you observe a no alcohol BAC limit.
- use a vehicle that’s correctly registered, insured and roadworthy
- have clearly visible L plates attached to the front and rear of the vehicle
- sit in the front passenger seat and ensure you have a clear view of the road
- not use a phone on speaker while your learner driver is driving if they’re under 25
- have a good understanding of the current road rules
- you should not be accepting payment or reward for supervising a learner driver unless you are an accredited driver trainer.
Accredited driver trainers in Queensland
In Queensland, someone who gives learner driver training for payment or reward, whether as a self-employed person or an employee of someone else, must be accredited as a driver trainer under the Transport Operations (Road Use Management – Accreditation and Other Provisions) Regulation 2015.
A reward or payment is defined as receiving a benefit, commission, fee, salary or wage in Transport Operations (Road Use Management – Accreditation and Other Provisions) Regulation 2015, schedule 7.
You can read more about how to become an accredited driver trainer in Queensland.
Starting Conversations
You can start conversations about driving before your learner driver gets their learner licence.
While you’re travelling together in the vehicle, explain the driving tasks you’re thinking about as you drive. Talk to your learner driver about how you:
- scan the road environment
- perceive and recognise hazards
- make decisions to avoid them.
Helping the learner driver build road awareness will make it easier when they start driving. As your learner driver progresses to their provisional licence, this assistance can make a big difference to their safety and driving future.
Supervising a learner driver
Your learner driver can enrol in PrepL from the age of 15 years and 11 months. This gives them a month to complete PrepL and obtain their learner licence on their 16th birthday. Read more about getting a learner licence.
Once the learner driver has their learner licence, they can drive with a supervisor. This can be an accredited driver trainer or a person who meets the supervisor criteria.
If you are planning on supervising a learner driver, you can access additional resources including:
- You can enrol in the PrepL Supervisor Course to refresh your knowledge of the road rules, download lesson plans and work through helpful guides on how to teach your learner.
- Download Your Keys to Driving In Queensland to refresh your knowledge of the road rules.
Each learner progresses at a different rate. Logging 100 hours of supervised driving experience doesn’t mean they’re automatically ready for their practical driving test. The learner period is one of the safest times to get experience—even if it means delaying a practical test until the learner is completely confident.
In this guide:
- Preparing to be a supervisor
- Planning a lesson
- Gaining experience and avoiding hazards
- Moving on to P plates