123 FAHRSCHULE Berlin-Neukölln

"It's a genuine shame that I have to leave a not-so-positive review for this driving school, as things started out really great at first. I came in with good expectations, given the stellar ratings on here. Firstly, the app and theory practice simulations were quite fantastic. I was able to learn at my own pace, and the exam questions were (mostly) translated into English to allow me to easily comprehend the concepts. It was a fun way to learn the road rules, and I enjoyed the way it gamified the experience. The theory lessons were also a really convenient experience, but note however that now I believe you are required to attend in person. I was able to attend classes at home via Zoom at the time, without the need to travel across the city. The lessons were all in German, but reading material was provided which I could translate myself and follow along. Everything was going great at this point, so I was satisfied, despite the higher-than-average costs compared to most schools. One of the major reasons I chose this school over any others, despite living on the opposite side of Berlin, was all the positive accounts on Google reviews about their English-friendliness. The issue was, that by the time I joined (March 2022), the teacher who had received such high praise had recently left the school. I was assigned Sami as my driving instructor, and I unfortunately cannot say a lot of positive things from this point onwards. His English was serviceable, and he can get his point across well enough, however I was frequently unsatisfied with his temperment. He often got frustrated and shouted at me when I made a mistake, sometimes slamming the brakes in the middle of the road to lecture me instead of allowing us to pull over somewhere safely. Angry teachers are a common concern when it comes to learning to drive, however it definitely impacted my overall enjoyment of my time at the school, and I had no other choices as none of the other teachers could speak English. I was pretty much stuck until the end at that point, unless I paid a bunch more to move schools. During many of my lessons, he spent a good portion of the time on his phone, browsing or talking to somebody, not paying enough attention to what I was doing or putting in much effort to give me feedback on driving. He would often bring his friends with him in the car to talk with, rather than focusing on the lesson. His teaching technique also gave me a bad habit, which I had to unlearn immediately after driving on my own (starting from a stop with clutch only). He was hyper-focused on getting me through the lessons and to the test, which I appreciate, but technique was poorly taught in general. There were also many attempts to pressure me into paying for more lessons than I had agreed to. The day before my first test, my instructor showed up an hour late (seemingly forgetting our appointment), and then tried to charge me for more time, despite it not being my fault we went over. I've heard that the other instructors are much more professional, for what that's worth. If your German skills aren't great, I would highly suggest looking elsewhere first to find somewhere that can ensure you an English-speaking instructor. Sadly, I feel I would've had a much more comfortable experience if I had chosen somewhere else. Edit: Review changed from 2 stars to 1 star, due to the company attempting to remove this review shortly after posting."

"!!! Avoid This Driving School if You Don’t Speak German !!! If you don’t speak German, this driving school is not a good choice. The support team doesn’t speak English, and to make matters worse, they are rude and unhelpful. They don’t have a physical office in town, so if you have any issues or questions, you’re left relying on their impolite and unresponsive support team. On top of that, they constantly spam you with reminders to top up your account. I was shocked to find that they charged me €100 for theory classes, even though I didn’t need them—and just so you know, the theory classes are only in German! Every time I made a payment, they added extra charges labeled as “service fees,” which felt unnecessary and unfair. Their contract is fixed for one year, meaning even if you pass the theory test quickly, they’ll charge you again for services they don’t actually provide. I specifically requested to take driving lessons with a particular instructor, but they ignored my request and assigned me someone else. When I raised the issue, they avoided me altogether. With the high prices they charge, it’s only reasonable to expect the freedom to choose your instructor. In the end, I regretted every cent I spent on this school. I switched to a different driving school where I was treated with respect and had a much better experience."

"I had a good experience with 123 Fahrschule. My driving instructor was Ufuk and I would highly recommend him. I was a bit nervous about driving in Germany as the road signs are a bit different, as well as driving on the other side of the road! Ufuk is calm and understanding but also good craic. He has a lot of practical knowledge and gives really useful tips. One drawback is that the theory lessons are in German so they were a bit hard to follow but at least I could practise in the app in English. Although, I did purchase another app for the theory questions so that I could have the explanation in English. Staff are very quick to respond to messages."

"I think my overall experience was good. I exchanged my license so I prepared for theory exam myself and cleared it. When I contacted 123Fahrschule they were quick to response for the availability of instructors and classes, also had a call with one of the customer representative who clearly explained me the process in English. After I registered with them, I was assigned Sami as my instructor and I quickly started with practical lessons. I think I learned a lot with every lesson, it was a struggle but Sami is a very good instructor as he tries to focus on your weak points and makes you do it again and again so that you don’t do that mistake again. He spoke good English so it was easy to understand certain rules and way of driving. So overall experience was really nice. Although in cons I will say that practical lessons are a bit expensive but maybe the services you get makes it worth it."

"The app is in english and easy to use. Booking lessons is pretty quick and easy."

"I had a great experience with 123 fahrschule. The staff were always quick to answer my questions and communication was clear. My teacher, Ufuk, was a calm driving instructor and helped me a lot with overcoming my fears. My only critique is with regards to the theory - learning materials are all in German, but the app can be programmed in English. However even if its programmed in English, all of the explanations are in German which made the theory difficult to learn. Besides this, great experience - thank you to Ufuk and the rest of the staff!"

"Great school, teachers and admin staff! You can do everything in English, and through app. I learnt from Sami Ouerhani, and he is a really great teacher. I can recommend everyone who wants to learn driving to join the school and learn from Sami. He is patient and communicative, and tailors the classes to best fit you. I learnt quite fast from him. Also want to mention another teacher Ufuk Uzun. He accompanied me to the exam, and helped me prepare before the exam. He was really helpful and gave me great tips and helped me revise the basics again. To everyone that wants to learn driving quick, I recommend the school fully!"

"Everyone at the reception and my driving instructor, Cesur, are very friendly, patient, and do their best. If there were an award for being the best driving instructor, I’m sure Cesur would get it 🏆. Every step can be in English except the theoretical lessons, but it’s no problem - there’s an app in English and you still can learn many things from the theoretical lessons even if you can’t speak German. I passed my theoretical and practical exams both in the first attempt. Many thanks to 123fahrschule Berlin-Neukölln!"