AABC Driving School

Hello, Dane. While we appreciate our customers taking the time to review our school, two aspects of your review puzzled us. First, why did you wait for nearly a year to post a review? Second, it's surprising to hear you now express dissatisfaction, since neither you nor your family raised any concerns during the 12 months you were with us.

Let’s start with your Online experience.

We lease the online class you took from another company. This is a quite common way for Driver Ed Schools to operate as very few have the resources to create our own online class. If you would like to give the creators of that program constructive feedback, we can provide you with their contact information—just let our Main Office know.

In doing so, please note that ALL online Driver Ed program content used in Wisconsin is regulated by The Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles, not individual Driving Schools. The State determines what is, or is not, in these programs. All programs are 30 hours long, allow students to study at their own pace with the ability to repeat sections, and set a max study limit of 2 hours per day.

In terms of the “rules of the road” (ROTR) that you felt you only got when you started BTW, they are explained throughout the course itself, and the Wisconsin Motorist’s Handbook; the document that you should have been referring to & studying during your online course time. You were told of The Handbook on Day 1, and again at the end, of the course.

With that said, we are curious. Would you be willing to share with our Office what ROTR’s you felt you had not gotten until you were in BTW?

Next, let's discuss what you might have been told during your driving lessons.

Driving is not a rite of passage; it’s a life-or-death responsibility. While Driving Instructors aim to encourage their students whenever possible, it is not their jobs to make you feel good about your progress if it is inadequate. At times, Instructors need to be frank & honest with students, sometimes brutally frank & honest.

While all students will face some kind of challenge at some point, some struggle significantly with basic essentials such as vehicle control, concentration, or properly evaluating their actual abilities. A few will resist instruction & correction. Others may not tell Instructors of personal issues that could affect learning.

In the worst cases, empty compliments are not helpful. Such warnings are not uncommon for students not showing significantly adequate progress, as it is crucial that they understand that radical change now is required to avoid serious consequences later; the deadly kind of which over 40,000 people suffer in this country every year.

Your comments suggest that the 35 days you took to finish your course may have been too quick. While not considered fast in general, it does seem fast for one who was “constantly confused” by the sessions. This concern is supported by your earlier-mentioned ROTR issues.

While difficult for us now to evaluate your performance from a year ago, your Instructor at the time uniquely could - as you had him for all of your BTW lessons. Given the totality of your situations it is not far-fetched to suggest that you may have been a candidate for some brutally honest warnings (although it is unlikely that you were told you would “never” become a good driver).

Instead of feeling resentful about uncomfortable feedback you received nearly a year ago, consider this perspective. Did you encountered a pivotal person who told you what you didn’t want to hear, and who torqued you off enough to motivate you to prove them wrong. Clearly, something between your last lesson and the DMV Road Test inspired you to succeed.

While we are saddened by your dissatisfaction of your time with us at AABC, we are pleased that you eventual did succeed in qualifying for your Driver’s License. After all, we now share the same road together.

We do wish you many safe and enjoyable driving miles ahead.

Hi Jenny,

First of all – CONGRATULATIONS on both of your sons’ having done so well on their DMV Road Tests, and on their successful launch into a world of more responsibility and independence (if not also some relief on your transportation contributions)!

Wow! We are profoundly grateful for your kind and heartfelt sentiments about your experience with us at AABC Driving Schools! It truly means a lot to us. We are honored to have played a role in your family’s journey in developing your sons’ driving skills.

Your involvement, patience, and unwavering support (of both your sons, and us!) throughout this adventure has been nothing shy of remarkable! You’ve truly captured the essence of Drivers Education as being a PARTNERSHIP between the Driving School, the Family, and the Students.

Tony and Tina have genuinely enjoyed working with you and your sons. They’ve expressed sort of being bummed now that the lessons have finally concluded!

We wish you and your family many exciting and safe driving adventures ahead. Thank you once again for placing your trust in us and allowing us to be part of this significant step in your students' lives.

Hello Yelyzaveta,

Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging words about our driving school and Instructor Anthony! It was our pleasure to assist you through your driver education process. Be proud of your achievement, especially in overcoming the challenges you faced along the way. Your determination and perseverance were remarkable! You never gave up - and you nailed it in the end! WAY TO GO!

We are honored to have been a part of your journey. We (especially Anthony!) wish you the very best as you embark down the road on your promising future. Safe driving to you, and thank you once again!

Good Day, Rena. We are sorry to hear of your dissatisfaction with your experience at AABC Driving Schools. While we always welcome constructive criticism from our customers, you regrettably chose to engage in a largely inaccurate & emotional tirade in the case of your review.

We have a clear process for scheduling Behind The Wheel (BTW) sessions, which takes place on the 5th of each month via phone. If the phone is busy, our voicemail is available, and we strive to return calls promptly. Hundreds of our students and families successfully followed this process every month.

After appointments are filled for that monthly session, any late callers are placed on a wait list. If Instructors can put in more hours than originally anticipated, wait list students are called and offered those time slots.

On July 3, 2024, this procedure was clearly explained to you. You then successfully followed this procedure in July and August to get your first 2 BTW lessons.

You called us late on September 12th, after all appointments had been filled. You were placed on the wait list and were later contacted to schedule your 3rd lesson as more time slots had become available.

When you did not contact us at all in October, and office staff realized this you were placed on the wait list - as a courtesy. While this has slightly delayed the eventual completion date of your student’s 6 BTW lessons, it was due to your inaction. Even now, if you return to adhering to the scheduling policy, your student will still be able to complete all required lessons in well under a year's total time. You have only 3 lessons left, and are only 4 months into the process.

You again called late on November 12th. All appointments were filled, and you were put on the wait list. During this call, our staff noted that your tone was "hostile."

You indicated that your student is in school and cannot call us. The majority of our students are in the same situation. This is why, if they cannot call us by 5 PM, their families make the call on their behalf. They understand that Driver Education is a cooperative effort that involves the family, not just an individual teen.

You claim to have “called & called” us, yet there were no voicemail messages left by you on our system. We understand that recordings can seem impersonal and uncaring. However, they are a necessary part of business communications. We cannot return calls when no messages are left.

You said that we should have online scheduling or personally call everyone each month. As a small family-owned business, we simply do not have the resources for such options.

You were upset when we would not give you the Owner’s personal phone number. You were given the Office number – which he uses professionally and also told that he would call you back when he was not with other students.

When we would not yield to your contentions and demands you threatened to leave a bad review about us online. Not only did you do so here - on the Main Office’s site, but you then “double-dipped” by posting another one on our West Side Classroom site – which you clearly knew you had not been working with (you admitted as much in that review).

Lastly, not getting your way - because our staff chose to adhere to our policies & procedures rather than capitulate to your demands - does not equate to our being "rude." You were treated with professionalism throughout your interactions. Your tone did not warrant being treated with warmth and pleasantries, but you were treated professionally.

Moving forward, Rena, we hope that you will return to timely use of our scheduling procedure so that your student will not have any further delays in their Driver Ed experience. We also hope that if there are any further issues you wish to bring up, they will be expressed in a more forthright, constructive, and proper manner.