🟡 You Can’t Charge That Much
“You can’t charge that much.”
It’s a phrase that many driving instructors hear at some point in their career.
Sometimes it comes from another instructor.
Sometimes from a friend.
Occasionally from a learner.
The implication is usually the same.
“People won’t pay it.”
When I first heard those words, I didn’t immediately dismiss them.
Nor did I immediately believe them.
Instead, I did what I encourage my learners to do every day.
I looked for the evidence.
As driving instructors, we regularly ask our learners not to make assumptions.
A learner approaching a roundabout might say:
“There won’t be anything coming.”
Our response isn’t:
“You’re wrong.”
It’s usually another question.
“What information are you using to make that decision?”
It’s a simple coaching technique.
We encourage observation before judgement.
I realised my business deserved exactly the same approach.
Rather than accepting somebody else’s opinion about my prices, I decided to investigate.
I spent time reviewing what other instructors in my area were charging.
Not just the cheapest.
Not just the most expensive.
The whole market.
I looked at what was actually being offered.
Lesson lengths.
Teaching style.
Reviews.
Reputation.
Experience.
Availability.
Customer experience.
I wanted an honest picture.
Then I asked myself a much more important question.
What is my service genuinely worth?
Not what I hoped it was worth.
Not what somebody else thought it should be worth.
What was the value I was actually providing?
That question changed the conversation completely.
Because pricing isn’t really about numbers.
It’s about value.
Imagine two instructors charging exactly the same hourly rate.
One regularly arrives late, frequently rearranges lessons, has no structured approach and provides little feedback between lessons.
The other is organised, reliable, communicates well, helps learners understand their progress, provides resources between lessons and creates a calm learning environment.
On paper, they cost the same.
In reality, they’re offering very different experiences.
Price and value are not the same thing.
I sometimes think our profession has an unhealthy relationship with pricing.
Too many conversations begin with:
“What are you charging?”
Perhaps a better question is:
“What are your pupils receiving in return?”
If the answer is simply sixty minutes sitting in a car, then price becomes the obvious comparison.
If the answer is professional coaching, careful planning, clear communication, ongoing support and an enjoyable learning experience, the conversation becomes rather different.
This isn’t an argument for charging more.
It’s an argument for understanding what you’re charging for.
There are excellent instructors charging different prices in different parts of the country.
New opportunities continue to emerge.
There isn’t one correct hourly rate.
Local markets differ.
Costs differ.
Businesses differ.
Goals differ.
That’s exactly why comparing your prices with somebody else’s without understanding the whole picture can be misleading.
I also think there’s another question worth asking.
Who decided what your prices should be?
Was it you?
Or was it the instructor down the road?
Perhaps it was a comment you read on social media.
Perhaps it was something you heard in a waiting room at a test centre.
It’s surprising how often important business decisions are influenced by opinions that have never really been examined.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that confidence doesn’t come from simply increasing your prices.
Confidence comes from knowing why you’ve chosen them.
When somebody asks about your lesson prices, can you honestly explain the value behind them?
Not defensively.
Not apologetically.
Calmly.
Because you’ve already done the work.
You’ve reviewed your market.
You’ve assessed your service.
You’ve thought about your business.
You’ve reached a considered decision.
That feels very different from picking a figure because somebody else charges the same.
There is another side to pricing that isn’t discussed often enough.
Every pound you charge influences the type of business you build.
Charge too little for too long and something usually has to give.
You may find yourself working longer hours.
Travelling further.
Accepting lessons you don’t really want.
Saying yes when you’d rather say no.
The diary becomes fuller.
Life becomes smaller.
That’s why pricing isn’t just a financial decision.
It’s a design decision.
It shapes your working week, your energy, your availability and ultimately your enjoyment of the profession.
I often think back to the phrase:
“You can’t charge that much.”
Looking back, I’m actually pleased somebody said it.
Because it forced me to stop and examine my business properly.
It made me gather evidence rather than rely on opinion.
It helped me understand the value I was providing instead of simply copying what others were doing.
The comment didn’t determine my prices.
It improved my thinking.
Before you make your next pricing decision, perhaps ask yourself three questions.
Have I genuinely reviewed my local market?
Have I honestly assessed the value I provide to my pupils?
Am I setting my prices by design… or by somebody else’s expectations?
The answers may not tell you to increase your prices.
They may not tell you to reduce them either.
But they should help you reach a decision that’s based on evidence rather than assumption.
And that’s exactly what we ask our learners to do every time they get behind the wheel.
Perhaps our businesses deserve the same standard of thinking.