Harrogate driving instructors are worried about the health risks of returning to work after struggling financially during lockdown.

Tam Gallagher, chairman of the Harrogate Association of Approved Driving Instructors (HAADI), said that instructors have been told to expect to go back to work on July 6. That’s alongside other professions that can’t work with the two-metre social distancing rule, such as hairdressers. But they are aware of the ongoing risks involved with working in an enclosed space.

He said:

“Some instructors who have underlying health issues are fearful of going back. They are going to go back to work with the hope that they don’t catch anything, but if they don’t work then they don’t make money.”

A handful of instructors of Harrogate have been teaching key workers how to drive during the lockdown but most have had to cancel or postpone lessons.

Mr Gallagher estimated that each instructor will miss out on £15,000 to £20,000 this year, even after the government’s self-employment grant of £6,000 is paid out.

All instructors in Harrogate are self-employed but some are attached to franchises, such as Bill Plant, which provides instructors with pupils and a car.

However, some instructors didn’t qualify for the grant because last year they were employed and only recently qualified recently to be an instructor.

Mr Gallagher said one instructor in the town has had to take drastic measures to balance the books.

He said:

“I know one who said he had to sell his caravan in Harrogate. He can’t afford to pay his rent so had to sell the caravan to offset the losses. He doesn’t get anything.”

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On Monday, the government issued guidance on driving tests which ended three months of uncertainty for HAADI’s 28 driving instructors. This included how instructors can protect themselves and their students with PPE.

Mr Gallagher said:

“It was a long time coming. We just didn’t know what was happening. The government wouldn’t even say all tests were cancelled. We were sitting and waiting. They didn’t tell us soon enough.”