Here in the UK you have to wait till you are aged 17 to take driving lessons unless you are 16 and receiving the higher rate of disability benefit.

Having said that not many teenaged people jump at the idea of learning to drive once they qualify to apply for a provisional licence, so this article is going to give you 5 good reasons why you should take driving lessons at 17 and not wait till you get older.

1. It is easier to pass the driving test at 17, the older you get, the harder you have to work to acquire the skills and attain the DSA standard through driving lessons, so starting early gives you a greater chance of success.

2. It will be cheaper on your pocket learning to drive at 17. Inflation always means that prices usually rise every year, and while competition does give you a variety of instructors to choose from, the good ones generally are more expensive and give better service. So you have fewer lessons at 17, pay less and save at the same time.

3. You can easily get people to pay for your lessons at 17. It is much easier to get parents, uncles, aunts or God parents contributing to your learning to drive when you just turned 17, as you can insist that instead of birthday, Christmas or even exam success presents they should pay your driving instructor directly for lessons.

4. Knowing how to drive is a valuable life skill, and the earlier you start obtaining it, the more likely you will obtain it. Just as you plan which university you will go, or what career you choose, you should think of obtaining a driving licence at 17 because it will be very useful later on in life.

5. Insurance costs reduce the longer you’ve had a licence even if you do not have any no claims bonus. While it can be very expensive insuring a new young driver, the longer you’ve held a licence, you insurance quote will be lower and your age will be increasing as well, so even if you don’t need to drive a car now, the computerised system will count the number of years a licence is held as experience even if you haven’t driven since passing the dsa practical test.

If you are 16, now is the time to start putting plans in motion to get driving lessons and take the test to procure a full British licence when you turn 17.

Shola Ogunlokun is a qualified and approved UK instructor, and gives London driving lessons to clients from all walks of life aged between 17 and 60. He also gives free test advice via his UKADI facebook fan page.