Referral Driving School

Fantastic experience: Absolutely fantastic instructors! My son learned a lot, felt comfortable and safe. I would 100% recommend them for any new drivers!

Fantastic experience: Omar for the win!!!! He was my son's instructor, who started the lessons as soon as he turned 15 1/2. Omar was very communicative with us on how our son was progressing. Every lesson finished with tips and advice from Omar. We got a detailed written plan each time, showing us what he needed to work on between lessons. Omar took my son to his driving test and a practice drive beforehand. Omar spent the time we were waiting quizzing my son on the things he had to know for his test. My son passed with flying colors! We are grateful for Referral Driving School and Omar! I highly Recommend them!

Fantastic experience: I would give Omar 10 STARS if I could! He is an amazing Instructor, made sure my son is ready for his driving test! Very grateful to Omar for all his help! Thank you for helping Zack PASS his test first time!

Fantastic experience: I highly recommend Daniel. He has been a terrific instructor and was instrumental in getting both of my kids to pass the driver’s test. He has a very methodical and logical approach to driving instruction. He is very friendly, patient and calm which helps new drivers not to get nervous behind the wheel. The instructions and the goals of the lessons are easy to understand. He gives relevant and helpful feedback as well as things to work on to improve skills. The rates are very reasonable and well worth the investment to make drivers safe! Thanks again Daniel!!

Fantastic experience: My daughter had a wonderful experience with Eric, he walked her through every step and accommodated her hectic schedule. Thanks Eric!

Negative experience: Worst experience ever with this company. Take your money somewhere else do not use this company. Had an appointment for my daughters final driving test and the instructor did not show up and would not answer texts or phone calls. Omar has been the absolute worst the entire time!!!! DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!!!

Fantastic experience: Both my girls really enjoy their experienced with Eric Lopez. I thought he was a great instructor. He was easy to talk to and very patience.

Fantastic experience: Great experience

Fantastic experience: The first thing that sets Referral Driving School apart from most other schools is their 5-lesson approach vs. a 3-lesson course used by most other programs. You can see a description of each session's objectives at their website. The lessons were spread evenly throughout the six months; at the time I thought the first couple should be front-loaded on the schedule, but I guess the spacing puts the onus on the parents to get in the habit of doing parental teaching early. Second, they handled everything having to do with the DMV driving test including scheduling the exam and use of their car. I'm sure it's not very difficult to schedule the driving test, but being able to avoid this hassle was very convenient. Thirdly, you may notice a theme in many of Referral's Yelp reviews. I rode along on 3 of my son's lessons with Daniel Tran and can confirm what other parents have said. Daniel is organized, knowledgeable, and encouraging, and his experience with new and young drivers translated well in my son's training; we have a perfect score on a rainy day to prove it. We're glad we used Referral Driving School and had Daniel for the lessons.

Fantastic experience: Referral did a great job getting our teen ready for the driving test. Omar was a terrific instructor, very patient and was a great communicator. I highly recommend both Omar and Referral Driving School.

Fantastic experience: I was pretty nervous to get my license, but Daniel Tran really helped alleviate those fears by being incredibly relaxed and patient. Thanks Daniel!

Fantastic experience: My son's driving instructor was Eric. He was very friendly, positive, knowledgeable and flexible with appointments. My son just passed his driving test on his first attempt. I would highly recommend Eric!

Fantastic experience: Eric was great. My son really enjoyed his experience driving with Eric. He was always on time and progressional, but also fun and supportive. Highly recommend.

Fantastic experience: My son had Daniel Tran as his driving instructor. Daniel was very knowledgeable, always on time and great at confirming appointments. My son just passed his driving test with a perfect score. Thank you Daniel! I would highly recommend Daniel!

Fantastic experience: Referral Driving School was fantastic - competitively priced, professional and knowledgeable. My daughters’ instructor, Daniel Tran, was beyond patient and helpful. My daughter felt he was patient, a great instructor, and gave excellent positive feedback and constructive advice. She felt very well prepared to take her driving test, and passed with a perfect score! Daniel communicated effectively with me, answered all my questions in a timely manner, was always prompt and respectful. I cannot recommend Referral, and Daniel, enough.

Fantastic experience: My son just passed his driving test on Friday with a perfect score! Thank you to Daniel Tran, his driving instructor from Referall Driving School for all the guidance and help. Your support, thoroughness and attention to detail made all the difference!

Fantastic experience: We used Referral Driving School for all three kids. Eric was our most recent instructor and he was excellent. Patient and relaxed and a great conversationalist with teens. The process was smooth and hassle free. Thank you!!

Fantastic experience: My youngest of three sons had Daniel Tran as an instructor. He was by far the best instructor. Very patient and always had helpful tips. Communication and coordinating lessons was excellent. Daniel is well organized and always on time which made my part as a parent super duper easy!

Fantastic experience: Daniel Tran with Referral Driving School is the most amazing instructor. He was so patient and calm. My daughter is so grateful for him and all his help and expertise. She passed the first time taking it and that’s due to Daniel’s experience and dedication to teaching his students. Daniel is the very best!

Fantastic experience: Great experience! Daniel Tran was patient, thoughtful and eased the mind of my reluctant driver. Thank you Referral Driving School and Daniel for a providing a valuable service.

Fantastic experience: Great service - appreciated being able to pay per lesson vs all upfront (we were burned by a previous company that went out of business after one lesson) Eric was phenomenal! Great communication & he connects with his clients.

Fantastic experience: Thank you Eric for being so great with my son and ensuring he had what he needed for his DMV Test.

Fantastic experience: Daniel was amazing teaching my son. Put him at ease and built his confidence. 100% on the test!

Negative experience: Would not recommend. Student Driver car is covered in hateful political bumper stickers, including calling people Sheep. One sticker is anti-vax. I would not trust my child's safety to someone with this hateful and deluded of a mindset.

Fantastic experience: Lightning Racer (Me) The Disguised Racer (Eric Lopez) Eric is a good friend of mine from his wife Rowe (my childhood babysitter). He was patient and a good mentor to me when driving on a permit from September 2022 to January 2023. Here I am today (1/27/23) with a drivers license. Thanks Eric for being my driving instructor and mentor.

Fantastic experience: Both of my kids use this driving school and they were fantastic. We lost my daughter's proof of completion and the owner had someone drive a new one to our house the night before her test. I highly recommend this company.

Negative experience: Terrible experience. We paid in cash last year with Brett Holcomb. He was erratic and spent the entire time ranting about politics with my son who was only interested in learning how to drive. He also was unsafe and kept pushing my son to drive 10 to 15 miles over the posted speed limit. We had 3 lessons with Brett and my son was completely done with him at that point. His car was also unsafe to drive. It was not maintained and would constantly pull to the side. I have contacted them via FB chat and they said they would have Bonnie contact me but it's been a week and no contact. I have messaged and called, but they have decided to not respond to my messages. I would avoid them completely. ****Update ******Someone worked with me and I was given a partial refund. I feel that the other instructors are more professional. We are using a different company and I think we should have contacted the school earlier to have these issues resolved. We tried to be patient with Brett and that's my fault. I should have spoken up after the first lesson.

Fantastic experience: Great driving school, they helped me get my license. The driving instructors are very nice and the cars they have are also very nice .

Fantastic experience: My daughter and I had a horrible experience from another driving school and this school did everything possible more than expected to fit hed in and get her ready for testing. June was such an understanding personable person that is highly customer service oriented that I can't speak highly enough of this individual. My daughter was paired with Micah whom she loved. My teen passed her test a week ago!!@ Thanks a million June and Miciah

Negative experience: Just watched a driver in this company’s car run a red light to make a u-turn to get into the Starbucks line. No passenger in the car so assuming it was an instructor.

Negative experience: I worked with the instructor named Bret. I am a first year in college student who never had the opportunity to learn how to drive. Throughout our lessons Bret has insulted me multiple times. He made fun of my moderate processing disorder and not having access to a car. I have informed him multiple times about my learning disability and not having access to a car. He continued to make remarks about that. One specific insult I can recall is when I asked him to speak at a slower rate, he did but in a mocking way. I cried in response to his insults and he still continued throughout the lesson. He apologized at the end of the lesson if I cried but his behavior continued in each encounterment. In today's lesson he mocked me by saying that I was a little girl who wanted my mom, knowing that she passed away from cancer seven years ago. He even said at the end of today's lesson ,and I quote, "teaching you makes me want to jump out of the car". He is fully aware I am a beginner and still takes me onto main streets when I request to practice and learn on private roads. I requested Bret to be in charge of our destination and to give me firm instruction. Bret simply uses the excuses that I am the driver and I should know how the road works. I am new to Sacramento and these main roads are still unfamiliar to me. He stated he doesn't have the patience to teach me and he takes his frustration out on me. He would say he doesn't have the patience to teach me and yet he would take me out for lessons. Bret also speaks at a rapid rate and when I ask him to slow down, he doesn't comply. He complained about my lack of comprehension and skills yet I cannot process what he is saying due to his speaking rate. I am aware I requested him on my behalf due to a recommendation. I would like to inform you that Bret is a good instructor for experienced drivers however not with beginners or people who do not own a car. We no longer see each other. This school seems great but this particular instructor ruined the beginning stages of my driving learning experience.

Negative experience: My son was to go get his license a few weeks ago and the instructor called the day of and said "the DMV messed up and he has to wait till March 3rd." Well i have tried to call the school and instructor Brian a few times with no callback on their part. My question is what business do you have teaching kids the responsibilities behind the wheel of a vehicle when you cannot handle the responsibilities of your own job. This school is extremely unprofessional and I will be reaching out to the DMV or whoever else they fall under to make sure they are held accountable.

Fantastic experience: I was with this driving school for about 3 months and I've recently gotten my license all thanks to Stella. Regardless of the other negative reviews, pay no mind if you call and get no answer, feel free to leave a voicemail. The main owner of the company will text you regarding your information and where you're located which would then get you an instructor based from your area. The main reason I was with them for about 3 months was due to the busy schedule of the instructors and Stella always recommended me to practice WHENEVER I could. Practice is key. Stella was amazing and would be direct on where I needed to work on, she made me feel super comfortable throughout my experience with Referral Driving School. I'm going to miss her and I would definitely recommend her (if you live in the Sacramento area) and this program!!! Many thanks. I'm forever grateful.

Negative experience: I just have had the worst experience with Referral Driving school. 1) I called to schedule lessons for my daughter. I only received a text back from SEAN. That should have tipped me off to how unprofessional this company is... to deal with customers via text. 2) I asked via text about driving on the freeway and shouldn't that be included in a normal set of lessons. He told me that with Program 2 it normally isn't included but if I spoke with the instructor, she could add in some freeway time. 3) DREA showed up this morning to pick up my daughter for her first lesson. She argued with me that she isn't allowed to take my daughter on the freeway and would not accommodate my request (even though SEAN told me she would). She told me that SEAN'S father is the owner and he should know better. 4) NEXT, she asked how experienced my daughter is driving. Um, this was her first lesson and the permit from the DMV says that she isn't supposed to drive until she has her first lesson. Again, she says that SEAN should have explained that Program 2 is more intense and not really for beginners. WHERE DOES IT SAY THAT ON THE WEBSITE OR THROUGH SEAN OR ANY OTHER EMPLOYEE? The website does not include a syllabus for PROGRAM 2. This is a driving school. Of course, this is all for beginners to start and learn to drive. This is why we are paying all the money to help the kids become comfortable behind the wheel and teach them to drive. 5) If I had the courtesy of a phone call from SEAN to explain these things, maybe things would have worked out better for all of us. But seriously, to say that my daughter should be more experienced before she even had a lesson is ridiculous! The permit states that she isn't supposed to drive before this first behind the wheel session. 6) DREA rudely tossed my my daughter's permit to me and said she was leaving. Well, good riddance. Referral lost a customer and our money. I hope that this serves as a warning to anyone else wanting to use this unprofessional company. BEWARE!

Fantastic experience: I love this place! I used this place for both my children a few years ago and now insisted that my niece use them too. The students get the same instructor every time, they take payments as you go, they pick up the student and there are NO OTHER STUDENTS in the car. They make the driving test appointments andThat take the student to the test. Great customer service. Another niece used a cheaper service and she had to ride with another student and she never got the same instructor twice. This is a sensitive age group and she said she felt awkward most of the time. But my niece using Referral now loves her instructor and says she is glad she doesn't have to ride with other students.

Fantastic experience: Mike C knows how to teach. My daughter took 5 lessons with Mike, one of which was from orangevale to downtown sac and back. I rode along each lesson and learned some things my self. Mike prepared my daughter for the dmv show and dance, and happy to say she passed with a 100% driving score. Mike took time to explain why your doing what your doing and how to stay safe on the road. Highly recommend Mike, nice, friendly gentleman.

Fantastic experience: Fantastic! Bonnie taught my son and daughter. She is patient, prompt, and always very friendly. I would absolutely recommend her as an instructor. Simply the best!

Fantastic experience: Sue is an amazing instructor. She has a lot of patience and helps her students build confidence in all sort of driving situations. Would recommend this place to everyone.

Fantastic experience: Very satisfied Instructor Bonnie did a great job training my daughter.

Fantastic experience: Best driving school EVER!!!!