To think that this woman should not have been on the road?

[TheFantasticMrsFox]

I have followed a car home this afternoon. Two people in it so possibly a lesson but no visible signs of a driving school, only indication was a P plate on the rear windscreen (so presumably the driver has passed a test)
The driving was appalling, misjudging corners, painfully overcautious, unable to pull out of a junction. The car behind me was hooting his horn at this point which would have made the driver more flustered but even so, it was quite dreadful.
To make matters worse the car was heading down a main road at school pick up time and past the county hospital A&E entrance (thankfully we never met an ambulance)
Now I'm aware that everyone has to learn and some people are more confident drivers than others. I just personally felt that whoever had taken the decision to drive that particular way (driver or passenger/ instructor) at that particular time had made a grave error of judgement and it can no way have done anything to build up the drivers confidence

I'd get off the roads then because some people speed, some people cut people off, some people jump red lights, some people don't indicate, with or without p plates!

some people speed, some people cut people off, some people jump red lights, some people don't indicate, with or without p plates!

That's exactly the point I'm trying to make.

No it's the point I'm trying to make, people are twats to other drivers, whether they have p plates on their car or not, simply because they're twats. That doesn't mean p plates don't work as the majority of drivers tend to sympathise with the new driver, that's why they recommend you put them on your car when you pass.

They recommend you put them on your car, who is they? My brother is a driving instructor and he certainly wouldn't advise anyone to put P plates on their car, quite the opposite in fact, he always advises new drivers not to put them on. But of course the decision would be up to them anyway.

Of course YANBU.
If you are still that hesitant / cautious after passing your test, then you need to build up confidence by going out and practising at quit time / on quieter roads, and build it up gradually.

I'ma newly qualified driver and I have P plates on my car when I go out. I hope that other drivers will see and perhaps be a bit more patient when I'm taking time to pull out at a roundabout or overtake. I am certainly not a bad driver, given that I passed my test anyway!

YANBU.

P plates have no legal meaning - they're a courtesy, to let people know you might be a bit slow. That's fine. But if someone's driving is really scary, of course you worry. IME it's as likely with someone who's long passed their test as someone recent: some people just shouldn't drive. My lovely brother is an example. He wrote off three cars (never hurt anyone, thank goodness, he just couldn't move for hitting something or falling into a ditch) before he stopped. And he passed his test first time.

My first week after passing was horrendous, hitting kerbs, couldn't park for toffee and people beeping. My examiner said I drove really well in the test and only had 1 minor because I hesitated a fraction too long turning at a junction.
It is very different driving after you've passed, that's when you really learn to drive. She had a P plate so you knew to keep back and be a bit patient OP. People could all do with slowing down and being a bit more patient in general on the roads. I would rather be behind a cautious driver than a wannabe boy racer type.

Yeah i know people can be horrible on the road if i have P plates on or not but it is noticeably different how drivers are around me now i dont have plates on my car.I dont know if thats understandable to anyone else but i noticed this.

Is it silly to say i feel like i feel that other drivers treat me like a "real" driver without plates on?I feel less shall we say highlighted?

I know what you mean - people expect the worst and put everything down to you being a learner or new driver when you have plates on, but I think they tend to respect your judgement more if there are no obvious signs that you might be lacking confidence.

To a certain extent I used to have the same issue when I drove a small and crappy car. People in expensive or faster cars would go to great lengths (and put themselves and me in dangerous positions) to overtake me, and then sit in front of me going at exactly the same speed we had been beforehand. I think they used to convince themselves that I must be tottering along slowly when they could see the back of my car, but then when they were out front realise that we were going a perfectly reasonable speed for the road.

Yes dojo!well what was more obvious that people were just being horrible is my dps car is not the type of car youd really bother overtaking for what it is.My car however....is a car youd easily overtake

Two people in it so possibly a lesson but no visible signs of a driving school, only indication was a P plate on the rear windscreen (so presumably the driver has passed a test) As a driver, you should be aware of this plate means. It means they are new driver on a provisional licence.

The car behind me was hooting his horn at this point which would have made the driver more flustered but even so, it was quite dreadful.

I agree, the car behind you was "quite dreadful" in their behaviour! Making a new driver flustered could cause an accident. The rule of thumb at a junction is only pull out of you are confident you can do safely! If they didn't feel safe, they were right to be cautious.

We were all learners once & it isn't hard to have a little patience & respect for those recently passed! The P plate should have alerted you to the fact that this was a new driver, and that you need to be extra cautious as they are prone to not knowing exactly what they are doing! I also thought it was well known that you actually LEARN to drive once you have passed your test!

They shouldn't stay at home because it's school pick up time. I mean what's the relevance of that?

Exactly! My very first journey after passing my test was a school drop off for dd! That is the whole reason I started learning to drive, to be able to get her to a good school instead of the local not so good one.

I just don't know why you'd want to advertise the fact that you're a new driver

it is compulsory here (Australia) to display P plates (meaning provisional driver, here provisional means passed all tests) with fines & loss of points for not doing so. We have to display for the first year after passing the test, then it is optional for a second year.

I found that most drivers here respect them & do give you time/space!

It means they are new driver on a provisional licence.

I don't think the UK have a provisional licence once passed all the test, do they? If I remember correctly, the provisional is the licence you learn on, yes?

Here we have the Learners permit, provisional (for 3yrs post test) and then full.

New drivers are subject to additional measures for the first two years after passing their test, but the license is a full one and not called provisional over here, so the P stands for 'probationary'.

Thanks DoJo. I know it used to be called a provisional in the UK, but I am talking many many yr ago. I left almost 10yrs ago, and realised it had changed.