Worried about driving a van

carl792 · Post by **carl792** » 15 Sep 2016, 13:20

Hi all, new to this forum but I'm starting my new role this weekend at Kingston depot and have my induction tomorrow at Croydon and Ive never driven a van before. Im not the most confident of drivers so it's worrying me wether I'll be ok driving a van. Any help or advice would be appreciated?? Also regarding my induction is it a one to one thing or will I be with others ? Many thanks

Post by **TrueBlueTerrier** » 15 Sep 2016, 13:43

if you have been recruited for an "Occasional driving" role then the vans are more car-sized than transit sized.

Such as this one.

Just get practice driving without an internal mirror, and just use the outside ones. Once you get used to it, driving transit sized ones will be no problem.

Post by **fb1969** » 15 Sep 2016, 18:22

I felt similar to you when I started, but it is something that you will easily adjust to doing. Take a bit of extra care and, as TBT says, use your mirrors more. The only "problem" I have now is after using one of the bigger Peugeots that have the handbrake on the right - I keep using the seat adjuster when I drive my car!!!

For the Induction Day it will be a group of you, 12 or so newbies and a couple of leaders. You will learn about the company but very little about doing the job. There are threads on here about it, dress comfortable and be prepared for a lot of sitting down.

lyneth1995 · Post by **lyneth1995** » 15 Sep 2016, 18:44

hey welcome , first of dont worry induction is very informal
and as for van driving you do a very small driving test but its not really a test its just to see that you are competent , ive never drove a van before and they stuck me in a big one for my test , the next day i was out in the van and was forced to reverse back up a one way street due to some idiot coming up the wrong way , nightmare, it does take getting used to and as for the interior mirror you will keep going to look at it , just check your blind spots and if unsure dont move untill you are sure you will be fine

Nondescript · Post by **Nondescript** » 16 Sep 2016, 01:09

Don't worry about driving the van, it's highly unlikely that they'll ask you to drive one in your first few weeks in the job, and as mentioned you'll probably have to undertake a small driving assessment to gauge your capabilities. It's almost nigh on impossible to fail it, but even if you do they'll just put you in a passenger role which is an easier gig anyway.

mb1 · Post by **mb1** » 16 Sep 2016, 19:26

I took my Royal Mail test 3 months ago after driving for the past 36 years and picking up 1 or 2 bad habits..... Remember it's mirrors mirrors mirrors, and that's not only reversing but also driving forward too.