After a long period of relative inactivity, Presto Driving School once again returns to the top. At the beginning of the year, the school licensed its first distance-learning programs. Compared with other driving schools, the study materials appeared noticeably more dynamic and interactive to us, incorporating various learning elements and examples that take into account different ways people perceive and absorb information.
It is noteworthy that this is the only driving school that does not sell its product to other driving schools. According to the school, this is part of its strategy to maintain its uniqueness. This means that when studying at a driving school, you cannot always be certain that the learning material truly belongs to that particular school.
In 2024, Presto ranked 1st in the national theory exam statistics for 11 out of 12 months and also demonstrated strong results in driving exams. Considering the total number of driving schools in Latvia and the intense competition, this is a highly commendable result.
It should be noted that the theory exam results provided by CSDD include both distance learning and in-person training results. A CSDD statistics graph available on the Presto website indicates that Presto’s distance learning products outperform those developed by Driving School Mustangs, Driving School Einšteins and Driving School Credo Autoprieks.
After four years of inactivity, the school has also resumed publishing comparison articles with other driving schools, focusing on key factors that influence consumer choice. So far, we observe that these comparative data are regularly updated. We have not noticed other driving schools practicing such comparisons. In our opinion, this is very useful for consumers, as it provides a deeper insight into the marketing and sales strategies used by driving schools.
We also noticed that the school has introduced a guaranteed group start principle, which is commendable. We had not previously seen such an approach, since driving courses usually begin only after the required number of participants has been collected at a specific time and place. This approach is somewhat unique and may often be less profitable, meaning the school sacrifices part of its profit in favor of customer convenience.
It is also positive that the school introduces its teachers and instructors on social media before the start of training, as reviews are not always available and random selection rarely satisfies students.
Based on publicly available information, this driving school has very few disadvantages.
We are pleased to present the Vidzeme driving school ranked 2nd in our TOP list. It was founded in 2021 after a large group of instructors separated from Driving School Einšteins. These instructors no longer wished to pay the client sales fee set by Einšteins, which increased every year, putting an end to what they considered excessive greed and misleading practices toward customers.
Since its establishment, AMV has already been included in our driving school TOP ranking three times. It has grown into one of the largest driving schools in Vidzeme and has also started operating in Riga. This growth has been achieved thanks to the strong work of its teachers and instructors. Something that does not happen often — both theory and practical training are delivered at a high level, with strong exam results and across all license categories.
The school could consider purchasing distance learning products from a higher-quality platform than CredoAutoprieks macam.lv in order to further improve its theory training results, as well as introducing an electronic system for organizing driving lessons.
By its size, the driving school has already reached the TOP 20 in Latvia. Whether the school will manage to maintain its current training standards and continue its growth will be shown over time.
DBS Driving School is available only in Riga.
It is a well-known PR heavyweight. Podcasts, campaigns with well-known companies, government institutions and their representatives are regularly organized.
The theory exam result is 71% — slightly above average, while the driving exam result is 41% — very good, especially considering the complex traffic conditions in Riga (bonus points for that alone). In driving training, it is clear that a structured system or program has been developed and is methodically improved over time.
One drawback of the school is that it uses distance learning products from another driving school (CredoAutoprieks macam.lv), which are relatively weak.
However, the school also has one significant disadvantage. DBS may be one of the most expensive driving schools in Latvia, sharing the last place in price level with Driving School Einšteins. The costs for document processing, theory courses, driving lessons and first aid courses are among the highest in Latvia. Therefore, although the total costs are transparent, they may often be comparable to those in fraudulent driving schools that mislead clients in various ways.
On the other hand, one advantage in terms of transparency is that the school has a driving lesson scheduling system where the client is not sold to the instructor.
This driving school is a newcomer to the TOP list. The school is a newly formed organization built on the foundations of Driving School Eksperts and Driving School Krustojumi.lv. Both driving schools previously appeared in our ANTI TOP 5 due to dumping of theory training prices, relatively weak training results and the mass, unlawful formal issuance of training cards. As a result, both effectively ceased their operations. Whether this will happen again — time will tell.
The school’s name is borrowed from bava.lv, which is a good learning tool for understanding intersections. The public face of the driving school is Ronalds Burnickis — an instructor and YouTuber. Looking at the school’s content on social media, it is hard not to notice that Ronalds is somewhat narcissistic. The word “somewhat” might even be unnecessary, although many of his followers clearly do not mind. Ronalds is a practitioner and demonstrates theory very well in practice.
The school has a large follower base on TikTok. Those who start early tend to gain the advantage.
The driving school shows good results in both theory and driving exams. In the driving school statistics, the school appears under SIA Burnickis.
The newest Category B distance-learning license at the end of the year was issued specifically to BAVA, placing it among the major players. At least during a phone conversation the driving school stated that it plans to sell its distance learning product to other driving schools as well. The learning material contains many practical videos, although it lacks deeper coverage of topics.
One drawback of the school is the absence of an electronic driving lesson management system, which makes driving training at this school more expensive than elsewhere. If the school becomes more than a one-person show, it could experience much greater growth.
A relatively new driving school available only in Riga and specializing in Category B training, which is also the most popular license category.
The driving school was founded by the instructor couple Petrovi. Galvenais Ceļš calls itself the most positive driving school.
This is largely a Russian-language driving school, with the vast majority of its content created in Russian. There are many educational videos about practical driving training.
A notable fact is that this school is one of the largest on TikTok. It is very possible that part of its followers come from Russian-speaking countries.
On the website we can see many reviews both on the page itself and across the internet. It is possible that there is some mechanism encouraging students to leave reviews, because the number of reviews compared to the number of trained students seems unrealistically large. Another suspicious detail is that there are no negative reviews. It is possible that they are deleted, but for now this is only an assumption.
We would also be cautious about the school’s offer to match each student with a suitable instructor through a discussion process. The absence of an electronic driving lesson management system makes this driving school more expensive than others.
Both theory and driving exam results are above average, and believe us — achieving this in both disciplines is not easy. It is no coincidence that we conclude our Latvia Driving Schools TOP list with this school.