The following terms and conditions represent the basis upon which training is offered by Modern Driver Institute. The provision of training is subject to the acceptance of these terms and conditions.
1. Learner’s Permit:
Student must hold a current, valid government-issued learner’s permit or driver’s license, and produce it at each scheduled session. Due to specific laws within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, only learner’s permits issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) are allowed. Permits issued by other states are not legally valid within Pennsylvania. An official driver’s license issued by any state is acceptable, but all training sessions must begin and end within Pennsylvania.
Copies of the original are not considered legal for driving and will not be accepted. If you do not have your learner’s permit ready at the beginning of the session, the instructor must refuse to permit the student behind the wheel. Should this happen, you are still obligated to pay for the training session.
Damaged or altered learner’s permits which are missing any critical informational fields are not legal for driving and will not be accepted. If your learner’s permit has been damaged, you may have it replaced at any DMV during regular business hours for a nominal fee. Do NOT laminate your learner’s permit – this immediately invalidates it.
2. Payments and Cancellation Policy:
Tuition fees are due prior to the start of the session. Payment can be made by cash, electronic check or credit card (securely via PayPal). Modern Driver Institute cannot accept personal paper checks. Any payments offered that are subsequently refused by the bank will be subject to an administration charge of $35.00. Delinquent accounts will be suspended pending payment, and currently scheduled lessons may be cancelled.
If you need to cancel or re-arrange a lesson, you must provide at least 24 hours advance notice. Should you cancel a lesson within 24 hours of the scheduled start time, you may still be charged for the lesson in full and additional lessons may need to be purchased to meet minimum training requirements. Frequent cancellations with insufficient prior notice may result in suspension or expulsion from the school.
Your instructor will do everything possible to ensure that your lessons start and finish on time, but reserves the right to cancel, postpone or change lesson lengths and start/finish times under certain circumstances (e.g., dangerous weather conditions). In the event of postponement, fees paid in advance will be carried forward.
The instructor reserves the right to cancel a lesson at short notice if it is suspected that the pupil may be unfit due to the effects of alcohol, drugs (prescribed or otherwise) or any other condition that would cause his/her driving to be dangerous or illegal. In such circumstances the lesson fee will still be due for the session.
Refunds are distributed at the discretion of Modern Driver Institute. If you feel a refund is due, please contact MDI at (267) 772-8689 or by email at mike@moderndriver.org.
3. Bookings and Lesson Duration:
The normal lesson period is approximately two hours, beginning when the instructor arrives at your location, and ending when the instructor leaves your location. The session time is contact time with the instructor, and includes any necessary conference time with parents or guardians, or directly with the student, both prior to and at the conclusion of each session. Again, all sessions are approximately two hours in length, but individual sessions may vary in length slightly. There is no implied guarantee of exactly two hours of wheel time.
If, for any reason, the instructor is more than 30 minutes late for the session, he will make a concerted effort to inform the student of the estimated time of arrival. If the delay is greater than 15 minutes this time will be credited to the pupil, and when possible the lesson will be extended by the time due – if this is not possible the extra time will be carried forward to the next suitable lesson.
The instructor makes every effort to maximize student time behind the wheel and student experiences behind the wheel, but every experience is different. Some appointments may end slightly early, and some may run over time. Student contact time with the instructor is approximately two hours each session, but may actually fall between 1 hour 45 minutes and 2 hours 15 minutes for individual sessions.
Sessions normally include a 5-10 minute break around the halfway point as an opportunity to stretch or use the restroom, but also to reflect upon lessons learned during the first half in order to apply them more effectively during the second half.
4. Training Locations:
The instructor will determine a location for practical lessons which meets predetermined training goals with concern for both the student’s and public safety – this means that the instructor may need to drive the student to and from the lesson location; this journey time forms part of the lesson as paid for.
5. Training Vehicles:
Training vehicles utilized by the school are registered as such with the PA Department of Education and meet all requirements thereof. Per DOE regulations, any vehicle used for training must be less than 8 years old, must have side mirrors, functional heating and must be equipped with an instructor brake.
Modern Driver Institute uses high-end vehicles that exceed all Department of Education requirements. They are protected by commercial insurance, feature modern safety innovations, are fully roadworthy and fitted with dual controls.
Modern Driver Institute recognizes that the students we accept as clients are learning to drive safely. While crashes and/or damage to the vehicle are always possibilities, these incidents are exceptionally rare. If the training vehicle is damaged due to willful negligence of the student (i.e., driving dangerously and/or against direct instructions from the instructor), the student may be charged the full cost of repairs to the vehicle.
6. Accompany To The Driver’s License Exam:
Your instructor reserves the right to refuse to accompany a student in their personal automobile for a driving exam if he/she considers that vehicle potentially unsafe.
Modern Driver Institute is firmly committed to a reputation for academic excellence and driver safety. Given such, we do not “rent” our training vehicles for driving test appointments. Only current students who complete at least 6 hours of behind-the-wheel training may have the option to use an MDI car for their driving test. If the instructor feels the student is not ready to be licensed or is unsafe in skills or behaviors, the instructor reserves the right to refuse to allow the student to test in the MDI vehicle.
While your instructor will make every effort to ensure that the company training vehicle supplied for the driver’s exam will be fully road worthy and comply with all legal requirements at the start of the test, he/she cannot be held responsible for vehicle failure that occurs during the test and is not liable for consequential failure.
Your instructor cannot be held responsible for test appointments cancelled by the DMV due to bad weather, sickness, staff shortages or other reasons. Such cancellations are beyond the control of your instructor, and the fee for the booked period will be carried forward as a credit on your account.
