The New York Chinese driving school “T&E Driving School” was closed down by law enforcement agencies for suspected large-scale bribery of examiners and assisting undocumented immigrants in illegally obtaining licenses. Many responsible persons and examiners were arrested. This case not only put many Chinese students who were learning to drive in trouble, but also brought the phenomenon of “guaranteeing a pass” and “buying a license” in the industry to the surface again. In fact, these practices are no longer a secret between many new immigrants and students.
A person who sneaked into the United States and finally successfully obtained a driver’s license in New York revealed that the driving school has long had the situation of “guaranteeing a pass” and “taking the test on behalf of others”. According to him, the driving school will arrange for substitute test takers to “take the lead” based on which examiner is easier to pass. “Then the driving school often takes normal students to the most difficult test sites. Some examiners are particularly black and have failed several times in a row. For example, I have a friend who failed the test four times here and finally ran to another state to get his driver’s license.”
He said that if you only sign up for a normal course when you register, you will most likely be arranged to take the test with examiners who are known for being “difficult”. Some people were rejected by the examiner before they even left the parking lot when they took the road test for the first time, while three or four “acquaintances” who were traveling with them all passed smoothly. Everyone knew what was going on.
This person familiar with the situation said that this phenomenon has long been an open secret in the Chinese immigrant circle. Many new immigrants who have just arrived in the United States and do not speak the language have to choose to “buy a license” because they are worried about identity issues and life pressures. He recalled that a few years ago in New York, many people actually bought their driver’s licenses. In the past, they could get it for a few hundred dollars, but in recent years it has risen to $1,500 or even $2,000 .
Sources said that after the closure of the T&E Driving School, many students who had not yet completed the test were at a loss and could only ask each other for information and try to contact for a refund. “I heard that someone just paid the fee and hadn’t taken a few lessons yet, but the instructor notified him yesterday that his phone number had changed and he should contact the new number if he wanted to learn how to drive.” Some people had even made an appointment for the road test, but now had to temporarily change driving schools and re-register.
