Phyllis Foster Driving School

Negative experience: My daughter went to driving school here a few months ago. They released her to complete the school early and that's not what i paid for. She should have went the complete amount of days. Also even though we drive together it seems like the driving schools don't teach you as much as they used to. I thought it would build my daughter's driving skills and confidence but it seems like it didn't help at all . A requirement but a waste of money.

Fantastic experience: The school was very i Informative. It was good for me because I learned about roadside that was not on the test when I tested for my drivers license. I wouldn’t recommend anyone to the school. The teacher, Miss Townes was very knowledgeable of what was being taught very much in everything that went on in the class. Very patient took her time and made sure that we all got what was needed. Now it’s up to us

Fantastic experience: Class was informative and helpful teacher was great

Negative experience: Hey all. I am a father of a student driver of this driving school. We paid $475 for a one on one. I let them know my daughter has never driven and could this driving school teach her to drive. I was told " we will get her right". Well , she isn't right, and still needs much work. They claim to give 50 minutes a day for 5 days . She left late and came back early two or three times, so we didn't get all of our time. Secondly she rearly drove in real traffic. For my child , her drive time was mostly in neighborhoods making turns. To this end , be careful , due research and get it in writing when choosing a driving school

Negative experience: Please please please if you are teen/adult learning to drive PLEASE don't use this business. I paid $475 for one on one driving (teen) lessons and I was promised to be a good driver as the outcome. They took me on the interstate one time. My lessons were cut short to 40-45 it's supposed to be 50 minutes per lesson. He made me drive in my neighborhood for 40 minutes practicing. No real driving experience on the road. I can say this course did help my anxiety with driving. But this was a waste of $475. Then contacted me after the course and said I can retake it for a discount at $450. I was disappointed with my experience.

Fantastic experience: Awesome customer service. Driving course instructor is knowledgeable and the course is very informative. Highly recommended.

Fantastic experience: I had to take the 8 hour class it’s a easy and fun class to take it the instructor is very nice and friendly they take you to their restaurant to eat lunch and make you feel welcome I recommend this class to anyone who needs it and who just wants to take the class to get ahead.

Fantastic experience: Best in the Hampton roads believe me

Fantastic experience: Good mr armstead is a great teacher that teaches in a very respectful and smooth manner If i had to recommend a driving school it’d be this one

Fantastic experience: Very accountable driving school! Good energy!! The class covers broad topics of the road, situations, signs and etc. I recommend Phyllis Foster Driving School to all drivers (multiple age groups).

Fantastic experience: Awesome class fun eventful but mostly definitely learnable and if it’s something you understand they’ll take the time to help and relearn with you until your have a full understanding

Fantastic experience: It's very great and educative.

Fantastic experience: Class was great, easy, and fun

Positive experience: I like the class, I have learned a lot of new things that I did not know.

Fantastic experience: Classes were great Mr. Armstead was an amazing instructor and taught me a lot. Very happy with the results.

Fantastic experience: The class was great and the teachers were very nice!

Fantastic experience: Class was very informative and helpful. Thank you very & nice staff

Fantastic experience: A great environment for learning, minimal to no distractions, and they provided nothing but relevant information

Fantastic experience: the class was fun i had a good time and i’ve also found a new eating spot

Fantastic experience: Awesome experience, time went by so fast.

Fantastic experience: Coach G is a really good driving instructor. I will say to take this driving class and it was an awesome experience.

Fantastic experience: Learned a lot there. Friendly , and helpful . A great experience. Highly recommend.

Fantastic experience: Leander Griffin: Highly recommended!! Great driving school

Fantastic experience: This class was great. I never felt more confident. Also it help me pass my first time after Mr. TJ is an AWSOME instructor.

Fantastic experience: Took the driver improvement course for reckless driving, instruction was clear to follow through and taught me alot.

Fantastic experience: Great driving experience, was really scared going in but came out not being anxious about driving anymore. If you’re going to attend a driving school i’d definitely recommend Phyllis Foster.

Fantastic experience: Amazing school! Coach G was an awesome instructor! Would suggest!

Fantastic experience: Learned alot instructor was very thorough and helpful

Fantastic experience: My experience with Phyllis Foster Drivin School was really good. I enjoyed the people and the instructor as well.

Fantastic experience: Best class ever, very informative and never a dull moment

Fantastic experience: Did a phenomenal job teaching our class. Will definitely recommend. Also, her restaurant is the bomb.

Fantastic experience: Class was very interesting and helpful, very knowledgeable instructors

Fantastic experience: Mr Armstead is the best driving instructor I swear. He kept us safe and made sure we knew what we were doing, and explaining things in different ways when we didn’t get it the first time. He’s patient but stern, and makes it known when you’ve messed up. The drives were never boring as he gave us life advice and talked about his own life. He almost won the lottery too!! If you get him, YOU’LL win the lottery cause he’s genuinely the coolest person I’ve met, and he helped me drive SO SO much better :)

Fantastic experience: Great class, very informative! Definitely come here!

Fantastic experience: Ms. Renee was great! Excellent class and would highly recommend this location to friends.

Fantastic experience: Mr.Armstead is actually a good instructor he’s friendly and he taught me to just be patient on the road and don’t drive everywhere like I’m in a hurry

Fantastic experience: Mr.Armstead is a great teacher and makes you feel comfortable driving.Thank you for all you do

Fantastic experience: Thanks Mr. Armstead for all your help and support. You're a cool dude and you made cool jokes too relax me.

Fantastic experience: Mr. Armstead Is one of the most laid back, chill, and the funniest driving instructor. Every time I got in the car he immediately has me laughing, We have the best conversations each drive, he makes me feel completely comfortable driving every single day. He calmly corrects you when ever you make an error and tells you what to do differently, He is a good navigator, He is a great conversation maker, and he is really good at being compatible with people. Mr. Armstead is overall the best teacher I will ever have.

Fantastic experience: Ms Townsend made it very easy for me to understand and appreciate the rules and laws of driving I learned so much about fundamentals of operating and driving a vehicle plus now I can truly say that I now know all of the road signs especially the ones that I never knew... I now say everyone needs to take this class I promise you that you will learn things you Never knew plus it's benefits from the class is amazing take it you will be glad you did

Fantastic experience: Mrs. Townsend is so kind and personable! She is very knowledgeable of the rules of the road and stays updated on the current changes.

Negative experience: If you teach your students to drive the way you drive by yourself around tractor trailers (moving in front of them to close, speeding up so they can’t pass) unfortunately they’ll probably be involved in an accident

Fantastic experience: I really enjoyed the class learned alot great teacher.

Fantastic experience: The course was awesome I learned a lot and I will recommend other people to come.

Fantastic experience: Best experience ever. Gave me insight on my charges in aggressive/reckless driving course. Instructor was fun and tough loving.

Negative experience: Please for the love of all that is good do not waste your money at this very ratchettly ran “driving school”. First of all the owner “Renee” owns a very run down shabby mediocre restaurant and forced students to order subpar and overpriced food in order to keep her financially failing restaurant afloat. Disgraceful. Her & the other instructor are extremely aggressive, like a couple of pit bulls. The man is loud, rude, obnoxious, discouraging AND distracting. Everything you shouldn’t be as a “driving instructor” you will not get highway driving instruction. Rene the owner also forces students to leave a good review of her business in order to get their certification. She’s a con artist, and a pitbull. ‍♀️

Negative experience: They where nice and respectful the only issue I had was that several questions on the test could have been worded better and several others could have been taught in the class causeing most of the finale test to be a guessing game

Fantastic experience: The class was all engaged into the learning environment and i was taught very well

Fantastic experience: My daughter attended the class and learned alot. The instructor was very courteous and friendly. A great place to go for any type of instruction needs. She also enjoyed herself

Fantastic experience: I found the instructors to be very knowledgeable. They provided a thorough explanation of all topics.

Fantastic experience: Greetings, Mr.&Mrs. Townsend provided exemplary outstanding, professional and well-needed driving services. Lessons learned. Thank you so very much.

Fantastic experience: This was an excellent course Mr. & Mrs. Townsend are very knowledgeable about driver saftey. I was highly impressed with all the information that was given in this course it was very easy to comprehend. They also feed you great food as well which is a major plus in my book.

Fantastic experience: This course was very informative ,it refreshed and corrected some misconceptions I had concerning alcohol and males. Would recommend voluntary. taking this course

Fantastic experience: Very understanding and takes time with students to retain information learned all my signs in a few hours.

Fantastic experience: They have a great program going on. I thought I knew a lot of the rules of the road but it’s a lot that has changed over the years. They inform you of everything you thought you knew. I advise everyone to take this class to stay current. I really enjoyed the class. Thank you

Fantastic experience: Phillips Foster is a great driver To be that they would teach you everything they know so that you can get learn not to make those again.

Fantastic experience: Loved tj and rennee. They made the class fun and interactive. The 8 hours flew by

Fantastic experience: This place is amazing you have a multiple instructors that all bring different aspects and unique way of teaching

Fantastic experience: Mr. Armstead is an incredible instructor! He made a very comfortable learning environment and was extremely kind.

Fantastic experience: This is the perfect driving school for Behind The Wheel training and if you’re looking to obtain your license. My instructor was Mr. Armstead and he made driving feel all the more comfortable. I came in with a bit of experience but he gave me plenty of tips to improve my driving. Not to mention that he is such a funny person to be around and lightens the mood when my nerves are bad. I definitely appreciate Mr. Armstead for this experience. I highly recommend him.

Fantastic experience: My daughter’s instructor was Mr. Armistead, who was both kind and professional. We were able to start classes quickly and staff were responsive and had good communication. My daughter completed the course and was able to obtain her temporary license. Our family is very pleased with the experience.

Negative experience: I was very disappointed with the instructor with this "school". He was rude and unprofessional. I was assured that my son would get highway driving instruction which he did not recieve. When i asked the instructor why he made a rude comment and blew me off. He was very impatient with my son. Would not recommend him at all.

Fantastic experience: I had Mr.Armstead he was real chill, cool and funny the whole time and made the whole experience fun

Fantastic experience: 5/5. I had Mr. Armstead for “(Teen) Behind the wheel.” He was funny and set a relaxed yet educational environment.

Fantastic experience: I had Mr. Armstead and he was a really good instructor! I had him twice and he taught me everything on how to drive. I didn’t have any experience and now I can drive to work. He’s also pretty funny and he sets a nice vibe. I highly recommend him!

Negative experience: I picked this school due to all the good reviews. It seemed like the few negative reviews were just not a worry to me but I was unlucky. I have ADHD and anxiety so my nerves get the best of me and if it’s not my nerves, it’s my ADHD. My ADHD just means I learn a different way from most people. I’m not medicated so that makes my ADHD a bit more noticeable and worse on the road in general. The instructor I had, won’t be naming names, was very nice at first but got fed up with my progress. Mind you I was still improving despite the odds against me. I was being compared to other students and how I’m not catching up like them or good like them. When I’m trying to move the car, I’m getting shouted at which makes me lose my focus. He’s doing everything in the book an instructor isn’t supposed to do. I cant focus if I’m being shouted at when all my attention is on the road. Which if you didn’t know, it’s really hard for a person with ADHD to focus yet i was hyper focused on the road until he shouts and I blank out. He also brings up my issues in front of other students. I just feel very discourage when I’m in the car with him. On top of that, it’s just non stop criticism from him. The first time it happened, I just told myself he had a bad day because it’s unlike him to behave this way but it continued on in future lessons. I’m not a bad driver, I haven’t caused any majors. I have made a lot of progress. Only minors which is expected because I’m new to the road but he expected me to be a pro which is just unrealistic. You can’t be a pro if you have barely had any experience in a certain amount of days. One hour lessons won’t make someone a pro. I won’t be continuing future lessons because the instructor makes me feel like the worst driver in the world. If you are neurodivergent, steer away from this place.

Fantastic experience: Phyllis Foster Driving School was great to work with! They were very accommodating. We were on a fast time line to get my daughter's driving instruction completed before school started. They were friendly, helpful and understanding! Mr. Armistead, the driving instructor, was very kind and patient! He arrived on time everyday to pick my daughter up and dropped her off on time as well. My daughter enjoyed the driving class! Thanks Phyllis Foster Driving School! ❤️

Negative experience: Worst company in the world. I paid almost $500 for a 5 day course for my son... he was never taken on the interstate and only got 3 1/2 lessons. They refused to give him the 5th day. He had no driving experience and still is very unsure of driving. This company sucks. I regret using them. The people are rude and they are slackers

Fantastic experience: My driving instructor, Mr. Armstead made an effort to make sure that you felt comfortable, he always knows how to make you laugh and it was a pleasure doing the BTW course with him. He was easy-going and gave great advice. It was very funny and entertaining, He called me saucy bossy .

Fantastic experience: Mr. Townsend is amazing with the behind the wheel training. I’ve learned so much more than I could imagine & I appreciate your kindness and patience while teaching me on the roads! Bless your heart. Thanks again! I fully recommend this place!

Fantastic experience: I had an amazing experience with this driving school! My driving instructor was Mr. Armstead and he was a really good teacher and overall a really good person! I didn’t feel pressured or nervous with him at all which made me feel confident and capable. He has a good and fun attitude and I noticed that he made the effort to connect with us. He was also really helpful with my paperwork that I had a little trouble with and he went above and beyond to make sure I could get my license on time.

Fantastic experience: Mr. Armstead is one of the most down to earth people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting and I would 100% recommend him to anyone looking to take a driving curriculum with him. I went into this past week nervous, thinking about all the movies I had watched where the driving instructors were some of the worst people on the planet! But that’s not what I was faced with. I was given guidance on how to be a better driver and I was in a very comfortable environment. Thank you Phyllis Foster but most importantly, thank you Mr. Armstead. Please continue to lead like you do and connect with students in the way you know how!

Fantastic experience: The driving class was fantastic Mr. Armstead the coolest you’ll ever meet and he calm, teach you what you gotta know on the road needs a pay raise

Fantastic experience: it was a great experience ! Mr. Armstead helped me improve my driving skills and taught me how to be a more skillful and safe driver. Would definitely recommend!

Fantastic experience: I had a good experience with Mr. Armstead he made me feel comfortable while driving and helped me a lot and he’s very funny and chill 10/10

Fantastic experience: I had a great experience driving with Mr. Armstead. He helped me get my license on the first try. He’s a great instructor and his directions are very precise and clear. Highly Recommend 10/10!

Fantastic experience: Mr Armstead taught me more in a week than I learned the whole time I had my permit! I really enjoyed his class he made me feel super comfortable!

Fantastic experience: I had a surprisingly good time learning how to drive with Phyllis Foster. Upon meeting my instructor, Mr. Armstead, I knew i would have a great and fun time taking the course, he made things easier for me and helped me to not feel nervous while bettering my driving skills, he walked and talked me through getting around a car as well as the city and gave me detailed sessions on how to improve, Mr. Armstead is a great instructor and helped me get my license within the period of the course. 10/10 Would 100% recommend him to anyone new trying to get a good driving instructor.

Fantastic experience: I had a wonderful experience during driving school, Mr.Armstead is a very reliable instructor and went above and beyond to help me get my license on the very first try. You will not be disappointed! Great navigation, very knowledgeable excellent experience!

Positive experience: The class was very laid back. I surprisingly enjoyed my time here for the driving course. If you have Renee as your instructor, you are lucky!

Fantastic experience: Ive been coming here as a Volunteer since 2014, its been the best learning & enjoyable class expierince while earning points on my Driving record & keeping up to date with DMV changes.The certification & 5 points as a volunteer helped alot with my job career and insurance rates.

Fantastic experience: Amazing job!!! everybody was helpful, and humble. Every questions I threw at my instructor, she would answer them, and learned life listens.I am very glad that I made the right choice. Thank you!!!!

Fantastic experience: Very relaxed class! Did not feel dreadful to be there. Kind couple runs a few businesses in downtown suffolk area and I would recommend all.

Fantastic experience: I enjoyed the class the teacher was very helpful she went through everything accordingly

Fantastic experience: This driving improvement class was great. It was very interactive and promotes a great learning environment. The course does not drag due to the instructors keeping everyone involved in the program. All questions are answered so no one is left confused. I would highly recommend this course to anyone looking to learn more about driving and the small details everyone overlooks.

Fantastic experience: I would go again for the experience. The method of teaching is outstanding and a lot was taught and learned by the instructor. If you need to go for improvement or driver's education it's a great place to go.

Fantastic experience: Mr. Armistehead did an amazing job teaching my daughter to drive. She had no, zero experience driving as her mother I thought it was going to take at least 4 weeks but nope 2,weeks worth every single penny. My daughter said that Mr. Armistehead was patient and gave her confidence . Hands down I would recommend this company.

Fantastic experience: I highly recommend coming to this driving school, I had Mr.Armistehead as my driving Instructor. he Is an amazing teacher! I’ve learned so much and Improved tremendously these last 2 weeks definitely a 10/10

Fantastic experience: Mr.Armstead was a amazing instructor he help me feel more confident in driving and helped me realize that the road and the places you wanna go aren’t going anywhere so it’s okay to take you time slow is okay just because everybody else is going fast doesn’t mean you have to so for that I thank you Mr.Armstead for everything you have taught me in the past few days and helping me feel more confident

Negative experience: Mr. Armstead was extremely rude, and is not tolerant of neurodivergent people at all. I was 22 when I took his classes because I never had anybody to help me, and I needed a little extra help to be comfortable behind the wheel. The first couple of classes went okay, but he progressively became more of a problem. He would constantly put me down for having anxiety behind the wheel, and would tell me he has a psychology degree and he knows better, and That " Us young people" Don't have anything to be anxious about. I'm literally autistic and he chastised me for that, as if I was making it up. He would also constantly take personal phone calls during the sessions, and even pulled me into a group session with four other students that I didn't agree to. He seemed to get along with all the other students, but started laughing with them and telling them that he trusts them, but he thinks I'm going to kill him behind the wheel. He also constantly put me down for being one of The only adult students, saying typically teenagers are the only ones that need this lesson. Made me pay an extra $400 for an extra week, that wasn't needed. He also criticized me heavily for asking questions for confirmation, to assure that I was about to make the right move before I made it, and tried to make me do a 10-page essay front and back, because I couldn't recite word for word the videos he told me to watch. I paid money for behind the wheel lessons, and nothing more, and had work and other things to do before and after the class.. and he told me refusing to do something that wasn't required showed him how committed I was or whatever, always low jabs. He also questioned whether I was even in college or not, because " I didn't seem like I was telling the truth about that", and even insinuated that my fiance might be related to me because I'm from West Virginia, and don't know much of my father's side, which was extremely out of line. On the last day when he handed me my certificate " he said, it's your life and left, insinuating that I was going to hurt myself or somebody else with the way I drove. Years later, I have driven without any issue whatsoever, so that was 100% him being judgmental. All in all, I completed the course but he was exactly the type of instructor I was scared to get. He completely judged me for being over 18, and having a few psych issues, as well as tourette syndrome. If your kid has anxiety issues, please keep looking around for alternative schools. Because I have heard Mr. Armstead isn't even the worst instructor you can get. Do not trust the reviews, apparently the owner of the school now forces students to leave them five stars to pass the class, must have been doing a really shitty job to have to add that requirement. I've even heard she forces students to eat at her restaurant. She owns and leave that a positive review as well

Fantastic experience: I was prepared to sit in a long boring class for 8 hours. Boy was I wrong! The driver improvement class was just the opposite! The owners were very upbeat and knowledgeable. The style and manner in which the class was taught was awesome which made it easy to learn. I would recommend this driving school to anyone who would need to take a driver's course.

Fantastic experience: After coming to this driving school it helped teach me to be more careful on the road and never take anything for granted. It’s very important to always pay attention and nothing on the road is ever a guarantee.

Fantastic experience: Great and personable. They get straight to the point and really take the time to get to know you along side cracking jokes and making light out of some people’s dark situations. It’s a very light hearted environment and they take the time to help people understand certain questions. 100% recommend!

Fantastic experience: I enjoyed the whole class from the first day to the end . My driving instructor is friendly ,patient , knowledgeable and inspiring . I got great useful and safe road-driving experiences . I learned much from her. It’s a good driving school and I’d love to recommend it to my friends .

Negative experience: Don’t send your children here!!! My child went to a defensive driving course because they got a ticket before turning 21. Day of the lady (Renee) was very dismissive of any question they asked. They wanted to know if they had time to grab something to eat. Renee said she will handle that later. Renee later pulls out a menu to a restaurant named you guessed it Renee’s and makes the children think this is their only option so they can continue their class. Food was overpriced and subpar. Then demands the children write a review of Renee’s restaurant & lounge in order to get their diplomas. They learned nothing. Quiz questions didn’t even make sense and they left an 8hr class after 3 hrs to go sit at the restaurant for an hour and a half. I believe we were recommended by the courts/dmv to go here. I’ll be contacting them next. Please don’t send your kids here if you want them to actually learn something. This is coercion. Some children didn’t have money to eat there. This is highly unprofessional.

Negative experience: This business makes students leave a 5 star review in exchange for their certificates. In short I paid for an eight hour class that I spent 3 1/2 hours in and then was coerced into buying food from the restaurant owned by the instructor instead of going down the street where I could get much cheaper food. Then I had to essentially leave a five star review to receive my diploma. The first couple of hours of the driving improvement class were okay. The confusion started when we were handed out menus to the driving instructor‘s restaurant down the street. At the time, I was not aware of this fact. The instructor explained that in order to keep the class moving we would order food from this restaurant and then pick it up and bring it back to continue the lesson. This is not at all what happened. A fellow student asked the instructor if this food was part of the class, as in free. The driving instructor told us no it is not free, circle what you want and we’ll go pick it up. only about five of the students order food because of the expensive prices listed. I ordered food because I had been there from 8 AM and per the driving instructor‘s words, I had expected to be there until around 5 o’clock. With the information given to me by the instructor, I was under the impression that this was the only way for me to eat within these 8 to 9 hours that I would be in this class. Those who had ordered food walked to the restaurant and those who had not ordered food waited outside. For some reason the owner’s husband had us eat at the restaurant and not the school. About 30 minutes passed after arriving at the restaurant before the instructor, along with the rest of the students, came into the restaurant. The instructor sat at the bar and asked us if we had done our reviews. I wasn’t sure what she meant by that and then I remembered the paper that was given to us along with the rest of the course material. There was a paper that was a step-by-step on how to leave a five star review for Phyllis and Foster driving school. One of the students needed a phone charger to fill out his review, so he and I walked out to my car to grab it. We then came back but on the way we met other fellow students who were very confused as to what was happening as it was not properly relayed by the instructor. Once we got back this was around 130 the instructor made us fill out five star reviews and show her proof in exchange for our diplomas. Very shady business. If you have teens that need behind the wheel, I suggest Walter’s driving school. Donna Walter’s is much more professional. They’re also half the price at $250 last time i checked and very flexible. I used them for my license

Negative experience: Beware. I read all the negative reviews but still continue to sign up for this driving lesson hope it could really help me.. I did 3 driving lesson in the past but this driving instructor is the most useless .. And he is MEAN. I am not anxious with the driving but i am anxious with the instructor who is mean Mr. TJ Townsend.. did 5 session for 475 did not help me at all.. No helpful technics no helpful reference point .. They are only after with the money .. 5 sessions 475 dollars one hour did not do anything to me except more anxiety from the instructor. No stars at all. I gave one star so i could post my reviews

Negative experience: I personally have not used this company but for future reference I will not be after having a student driver literally turn as I am coming up causing everyone behind to slam their brakes to keep from hitting the car. I can't even blame the kid but the instructor should have been paying attention as well. He don't need to be teaching anyone how to drive because he is teaching them how to cause an accident based on my experience this morning. I said what I said because I would hate to see someone pass after that and end up in a accident.

Fantastic experience: The class was easy to understand and very fun. The price of the class was fair. The instructors are very knowledgeable and organized. The food selection for lunch was great, and convenient for the class time allotted.

Fantastic experience: Great for foreigners, if you had a license in need a US license this is the way to go but you still have to pass the beginners permit test. Once completed with this class and pass your DMV test your hood to go. Money well spent.