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DRVRhub certificates to be honoured for those who took longer to finish the online program

Photo: Toronto.ca

Time should be the essence of a driver training program, the City of Toronto appears to have determined.

In deciding whether or not to honour the 3754 certificates printed and paid for by Vehicle for Hire (VFH) drivers who took the Toronto-approved DRVRhub on-line course, Licensing staff are informing registrants that this certificate will be honoured if they took longer than three hours to complete the program.

Slower test takers, who took longer than three hours to complete the program, will be eligible to be approved for a VFH license with the DRVRhub certificate.

Faster test takers, those who completed the program in less than three hours, cannot use their DRVRhub certificates as proof of training and will be required to take another approved course.

Fast test takers, which may include drivers with many years of professional driving experience and who are clearly well-informed of the rules of the road as well as the various human rights and anti-discrimination topics covered in the program will be required to take another additional training program.

“I am already out $140 for the DRVRhub course,” says Uber driver Earla Phillips. “I also paid and took the full Centennial College course before that. Now, I have to take yet another training course to keep my license.

“Toronto approved DRVRhub, for cripe’s sake!” she exclaims. “They need to reimburse us. DRVRhub needs to reimburse us. Somebody needs to reimburse us. This is pathetic!”

On August 10th, some DRVRhub certificate holders received this email from Toronto’s Licensing Division, which notes that “Where drivers took less than 3 hours in which to fully complete the course, it is reasonable to assume that they did not sufficiently engage with the material and that the goals of the new driver training program would not have been met.”

“Re:     Driver Training Program and your City of Toronto licence renewal

I write in respect of the driver training program you recently completed with DrVr Hub Inc. This program’s accreditation with the City of Toronto was suspended on July 8, 2022 and, as a result the City conducted a further investigation of drivers who had successfully completed the DrVr Hub Inc. program prior to its suspension.

In completing its review of the drivers certified by DrVr Hub Inc., the city considered a number of factors including the length of time taken to complete the online course.  Where drivers took less than 3 hours in which to fully complete the course, it is reasonable to assume that they did not sufficiently engage with the material and that the goals of the new driver training program would not have been met.

I am, therefore, advising that the City is exercising its discretion under the Toronto Municipal Code, Chapter 546-13.6 D to require that, as a licensed vehicle-for-hire or PTC driver who obtained their driver training program from DrVrHub Inc. in less than 3 hours, you will need to:

·       provide proof, by the date of your next licence renewal, that you have completed another approved driver training course.

·       find information on accredited courses here.

If you do not provide proof that you have completed a new driver training course by your next renewal date, your application for a licence renewal will be denied.

Any questions about this letter can be directed to [email protected].

Kind regards,

Jamil Elannan

Supervisor – Business Licensing and Regulatory Services”