I have twin daughters who will very soon be getting their 'L'. The believe the passenger restriction for a learner's licence is 1 supervisor and 1 other passenger. This will be a considerable lost opportunity for them to practice driving when we go somewhere as a family. If you've dealt with this situation do you have any advice?
Hi John,
Immediate family members are exempt, and them being twins - it can't get more immediate than that.
So suppose the following:
Twin 7L driving, Dad 5 Supervising, Twin Sister Passenger, Mom Passenger, Grandma Passenger + 1 school friend = OK
Twin 7L driving, Dad 5 Supervising + 1 school friend = OK
Because Sister, Mother and Grandma are all immediate family.
Twin 7L driving, Dad 5 Supervising + 2 (or more) school friends = Not OK
Because only 1 "passenger" is allowed.
Practically speaking, either of your twin daughters could fill up the minivan with 5 family members, and have an additional +1 passenger and +1 supervisor. For a total of 9 occupants, driver included, provided that the vehicle is designed for 9, i.e. 2 + 2 + 3 + 2 vans/suvs. Dad can qualify as a +1 supervisor, or even let his coworker "uncle Harry" (unrelated) take the front passenger seat as the +1 Supervisor (as long as Harry has the Class 5 license) and sit in the back with Mom as an exempted family member:
Twin 7L Driving, Uncle Harry Supervising
Mom, Dad
Twin, Grandma, Grandpa,
Little Brother, Brother's Best Friend (Uncle Harry's son)
You could even take the 6+ BUS LANE HOV :)
Wouldn't be the best case of training for an L driver, or the safest choice in putting an inexperienced driver in charge of so many souls - but still perfectly legal :)
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Your contributor Outrageous might appreciate it if the following is brought to his attention:
The passenger limit for 7L: Limit of 1 passenger in addition to supervisor.
The passenger limit for 7N: 1 passenger only (immediate family exempt) unless with supervisor age 25+ with a valid Class 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 licence.
The exemption for immediate family Outrageous refers to applies to N drivers.
One exception is that the passenger rule for L drivers does not apply to driver training vehicles doing lessons.
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Looks like I stand corrected. Sorry for the misinformation.
The L stage is only for 1 year, so it won't be much of a missed opportunity if they both get their N asap.
But looks like if uncle Harry is a licensed driving instructor and the instruction course is in session - you can have unlimited number of passengers regardless of family ties :)
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This is NOT correct, outrageous!
The exemption for family members applies to a 7N licence,
NOT a 7L licence!!!!! A 7L licence holder can only have one supervisor with a valid class 5 licence In the passenger seat and one pasenger in the vehicle, no exemption whatsoever for close family members !!!! If there are more people in the car and again, it doesn't matter if they are close family members or not, the 7L licence holder is violating a restriction on their licence and therefore is subject to ticketing or, in case of an at-fault accident, is running the risk of voiding the insurance on their vehicle.
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Immediate family is exempt