Churchtown test centre

thenexthenry

Has anyone done there test here and felt like they got screwed over??
I did my test there yesterday, and failed, but i can honestly say it wasn't my driving that failed me. My test was late afternoon, and i think the tester was in a rush to get home cause he brought me back to the test centre after only half an hour on the road (didn't get a Grade 3 mark before anyone asks)....and was literally out the door of the car before i had even pulled into the parking spot...also he didn't even wait for me to get out of the car when walking to the test office <snip. But i got X's on my result sheet that seemed ridiculous...including a secondary control, which i didn't even have to use during the drive.
I've heard that it's a very difficult test centre, and there have been a lot of failures lately....just seems an unfair way to get money from us!

Faith+1

It's nothing personal with the examiners OP. When I did mine in Finglas it was the exact same thing, I pulled into the test centre and the examiner had already gotten out and headed straight for the office. And your road test was the standard time 30-40 minutes so you didn't get screwed there.

And what secondary control did he mark you on?

MascotDec85

thenexthenry wrote: »

Has anyone done there test here and felt like they got screwed over??
I did my test there yesterday, and failed, but i can honestly say it wasn't my driving that failed me. My test was late afternoon, and i think the tester was in a rush to get home cause he brought me back to the test centre after only half an hour on the road (didn't get a Grade 3 mark before anyone asks)....and was literally out the door of the car before i had even pulled into the parking spot...also he didn't even wait for me to get out of the car when walking to the test office <snip. But i got X's on my result sheet that seemed ridiculous...including a secondary control, which i didn't even have to use during the drive.
I've heard that it's a very difficult test centre, and there have been a lot of failures lately....just seems an unfair way to get money from us!

The testers often don't wait for the pupil while walking back to the test centre. I see it everyday at Navan. I have to say I think it's a wee bit rude myself but it's quite normal.

You said, "...............including a secondary control, which i didn't even have to use during the drive."
Have you considered the fact you didn't use a secondary control when maybe you should have might have been the cause of that mark or, when the tester was going through the secondaries before you moved off you might have made mistakes due to nerves. The X for the secondary wasn't the cause of you failing.

If you deserve to pass the test generally you will. There are no fail quotas, conspiracy theories or anything else like that. The full cost of the test is still subsidised by the government so fails cost money, not make money.

My advise is talk to your ADI about the faults you incurred, work hard on them and good luck next time

CelticWarrior10

thenexthenry wrote: »

Has anyone done there test here and felt like they got screwed over??
I did my test there yesterday, and failed, but i can honestly say it wasn't my driving that failed me. My test was late afternoon, and i think the tester was in a rush to get home cause he brought me back to the test centre after only half an hour on the road (didn't get a Grade 3 mark before anyone asks)....and was literally out the door of the car before i had even pulled into the parking spot...also he didn't even wait for me to get out of the car when walking to the test office <snip. But i got X's on my result sheet that seemed ridiculous...including a secondary control, which i didn't even have to use during the drive.
I've heard that it's a very difficult test centre, and there have been a lot of failures lately....just seems an unfair way to get money from us!

Hi, I just did my test in Churchtown (also afternoon) and feel EXACTLY the same as you. Most of the grade two faults I received seemed way off the beam! I was very happy with my performance and couldn't believe he failed me. He also seemed in something of a rush and was bordering on rude and dismissive by not waiting for the end of some of my answers. Makes me suspicious of the "meeting a quota" idea!! Maybe we had the same guy

shamelessJ

MascotDec85 the government subsidise's which part because it costs 85 euro to do the test yea the instructor gets a percentage of that and the rsa get the rest, the test is a rip off

kirving

Failed there a few months ago.

To quote the tester - "I have no issues with the competency of driving, you could come back in an hour and pass. You were just unlucky this time".

I got 9 Grade 2's, 4 of which were for Observation Moving Off. Funnily enough, I didn't get any at all for Mirrors, and I'd think the two are closely related.

He also told me that I was unlucky to read a junction wrong, and momentarily crossed a while line, resulting in a grade 2, or possibly 2 I think.

I asked where I went wrong, and the tester just bluntly told me that he didn't have to tell me and got annoyed when I asked why he wouldn't explain. If he was actually concerned about road safety, he would tell me my errors so I could correct them, and become a safer driver.

I don't have an issue with failing, if why I failed is quantifiable. I can't understand how they can fail someone and not have to explain why.


Tester(start of the test): "You have a door open"
Me: "Nope, nothing open??"
Tester: "You can't go move until you close the doors"
Me: "???????????"
Tester: "The red light on the dash!"
Me: "That's the handbreak light....."

realgirl

I failed a test at churchtown in January but I thought it was a fair enough decision. The tester was pretty quick about everything but was polite and explained the markdowns he gave me without me having to ask. I'd advise taking your test result sheet to a qualified instructor who should be able to help you pass next time.

Faith+1

Kevin Irving wrote: »

Tester(start of the test): "You have a door open"
Me: "Nope, nothing open??"
Tester: "You can't go move until you close the doors"
Me: "???????????"
Tester: "The red light on the dash!"
Me: "That's the handbreak light....."

I bet he looked a right tit then!

Failed the first time, but got it there the second time. Was a strange one, I had an argument with the driving tester during the questions at the start but still managed to pass. I've a feeling that a lot of it comes down to general feeling they get from you - the first time around I failed by one Grade 2, but my guess is that the tester didn't think I was too confident to drive by myself yet (I wasn't!). The second time regardless of the questions I think he figured I drove fine. Just my own sneaking suspicion.

MascotDec85

shamelessJ wrote: »

MascotDec85 the government subsidise's which part because it costs 85 euro to do the test yea the instructor gets a percentage of that and the rsa get the rest, the test is a rip off

I believe the true cost of the test is in and around €125 with admin/processing costs etc etc. The tester, not instructor, wage is of course included in that. The test fee was increased to try and prevent people from applying for the test simply to get their provisional renewed.

Kevin Irving wrote: »

Failed there a few months ago.

To quote the tester - "I have no issues with the competency of driving, you could come back in an hour and pass. You were just unlucky this time".

I got 9 Grade 2's, 4 of which were for Observation Moving Off. Funnily enough, I didn't get any at all for Mirrors, and I'd think the two are closely related.

The two may be closely related in that you should use your mirrors prior to moving off however I'd like to bet that you picked up the 4 Grade 2's for failing to look over your shoulder (into your blind spot) before you moved off. It's a serious fault as you could be moving out into the path of an oncoming cyclist or something, potentially forcing them into the path of oncoming traffic.........

He also told me that I was unlucky to read a junction wrong, and momentarily crossed a while line, resulting in a grade 2, or possibly 2 I think.

I asked where I went wrong, and the tester just bluntly told me that he didn't have to tell me and got annoyed when I asked why he wouldn't explain. If he was actually concerned about road safety, he would tell me my errors so I could correct them, and become a safer driver.

They don't have to explain in case an argument ensues, a potentially volatile situation. Your ADI is there to piece together where you went wrong

I don't have an issue with failing, if why I failed is quantifiable. I can't understand how they can fail someone and not have to explain why.


Tester(start of the test): "You have a door open"
Me: "Nope, nothing open??"
Tester: "You can't go move until you close the doors"
Me: "???????????"
Tester: "The red light on the dash!"
Me: "That's the handbreak light....."

My replies in red

kirving

Well, my instructor couldn't figure it out either. I know I did'nt look over my shoulder once or twice on the hillstart, and at 8am on a Sunday morning there wasn't a thing around really. Crazy lookinf in your blindspot at every set of traffic lights, I didn't stop terribly much really either.

CelticWarrior10

Mascot, pull the other one! Can you tell me where you get your facts from???. 125 Euro? Says who??

The whole test booking system is almost fully automated (100% automated if you book online like most people do). So where the great admin fees come in is a mystery! The wage of a tester for 40 minutes work? Can't be more than about 35 euro surely!? There's plenty of profit in 85 Euro!!!
Of course there's incentive to fail a candidate!!!!

MascotDec85 wrote: »

I believe the true cost of the test is in and around €125 with admin/processing costs etc etc. The tester, not instructor, wage is of course included in that. The test fee was increased to try and prevent people from applying for the test simply to get their provisional renewed.




My replies in red

Feu

i've failed twice in Churchtown now. Altho both instructors were fine, I really feel hard done by!

Consensus of my instructor, and other drivers appears to be that I'm not turning my head "theatrically" enough when looking in mirrors etc.

on my second test last week, i got an automatic fail, and then 6 grade 2s scattered over the rest of the page. I asked the tester what the automatic fail was for, and he said "you can't just coast through junctions without looking left or right"!!!!!!!!! I literally never did this in the test.

I am a junction nerd. In fact, i always made a complete stop at every junction during the test, and looked both ways several times. [but did not get any marks for sloww progression et ] I am baffled! It's frustrating too, as i feel i will just fail again next time, as i cannot correct what i was failed on. frustrating!

edit* on a non-churchtown related note, i too wonder at the upping of the cost of the test. I have heard that the testing centres "lose" money, but i don't think its fair to up the price solely because people sit the test to renew their provisional. That is the system!!!! You have to sit the test to renew your provisional, and now people are penalized for using the existing system correctly!

AdamD

Passed in Churchtown a year ago, though there were 3 people there at the same time as me who all failed.