It is a bill that could facilitate the approval of the driving license in France. The deputies will examine from this Monday, March 27, a text that aims to “make the permit cheaper, simpler and faster”, according to its author, the Renaissance deputy Sacha Houlié, who is very aware of the issue for more than 1 million candidates. . every year.
1804 euros “all included”
But how much does the permit currently cost? In 2016, a study by UFC-Que Choisir estimated an average price of 1,804 euros, which is still quite realistic today.
In fact, this price takes into account the overtime (15 on average) that are usually added to the basic package, which is set at 1,155 euros, with training and approval of the highway code, 20 hours of driving and application fees).
However, these averages hide “very strong departmental disparities, unrelated to the quality of the training provided and that the differences in costs that driving schools support only partly explain,” stresses the consumer association.
Significant differences between the main cities
A study published by the comparator Lesfurets illustrates these strong differences by department, citing examples of average prices in large cities. So there is a basic package at €1,037 in Bordeaux, with an additional 1 hour drive at €44, versus €1,309 and €46 respectively in Paris.
If we add the average of 15 hours of driving to the basic package, the average price of the permit would thus be around 1,700 euros in Bordeaux and 2,000 euros in Paris, that is, almost 18% more.
The Alternatives: Automatic or Accelerated Transmission License
To reduce the cost of the license, it is possible to pass a B license that only allows you to drive vehicles equipped with an automatic transmission. The basic package of this BVA license (for “automatic gearbox”) costs around 600 euros for 13 hours of training, notes Lesfurets, or more than 1000 euros in savings compared to a classic license.
Another option, inevitably more expensive: pass your code and your license in accelerated, in less than a month. Interesting for those who lack time, but with an additional cost of about 1000 euros compared to a classic training.
Finally, we can also mention accompanied driving, which reduces the final bill for the driving license by around 400 euros.
online driving schools
Booming in recent years, online driving schools can also cut the bill. A player like Ornikar, for example, offers an offer of 799 euros for the code and the drive, that is, 400 euros less than the average price observed in 1,697 traditional driving schools in March 2023. A basic package price that, however , does not include the price of over time.
We found quite similar prices with two other players, En Voiture Simone and Lepermislibre. It should be noted that if the deadlines for the practical driving license test continue to be a black spot for online driving schools, the launch of the “RdvPermis” platform has helped to improve the situation.
Use your CPF or benefit from aid
The bill examined since Monday in the Assembly provides for opening the professional training account (CPF) to other categories. The opportunity to remember that it is now possible to use these funds to finance the approval of the B license, with 20% of young drivers using it.
People with an apprenticeship contract can benefit from a state aid of 500 euros. We can also mention the “one euro a day” permit, a zero-rate loan that can allow young people between the ages of 15 and 25 to benefit from an advance of 600 to 1,200 euros to finance the permit. Or the aid reserved for jobseekers with up to 1,200 euros of funding allocated by Pôle emploi.
A failure that can cost dearly
Don’t immediately tell those who are already anxious before taking their road test, but losing your license can be quite expensive. A case that is not as rare as one might think since 40% of the candidates fail on the first try.
You can then retake this test within three months. But as the Lelynx comparator points out, “driving schools generally advise taking advantage of this period to get an additional ten hours of driving, or an additional 500 euros.”
Source: BFM TV
