SINGAPORE: A former driving instructor whose licence expired in 2001 took on students illegally, continuing to teach driving for a fee after the traffic police stopped him and discovered he did not have the required licence to give lessons.
Between December 2023 and March 2025, 67-year-old Tan Teng Hock taught an estimated 110 to 130 students for between S$60 (US$47) and S$70 an hour.
The Singaporean was sentenced on Thursday (Feb 5) to five weeks' jail, a fine of S$1,000 and a disqualification from obtaining driving licences for 24 months.
He pleaded guilty to three charges which include being an unlicensed driving instructor and permitting a student to use a vehicle without valid insurance coverage, with a fourth charge taken into consideration.
The court heard that Tan's driving instructor licence expired in March 2001 and he did not renew it.
From December 2023, Tan entered into an arrangement with his friend, 71-year-old Fong Chong Fat, who was a licensed driving instructor.
Fong would refer some of his unsuspecting students to Tan, who would charge them S$60 to S$65 per hour. This gave Tan additional income.
Between December 2023 and April 2024, Tan taught about 70 to 80 students when he did not have a valid driving instructor's licence.
Of these, some were referrals from Fong while others approached him directly. As he did not keep proper records, the students' identities could not be ascertained in investigations.
The students all assumed that Tan was a licensed driving instructor. During the lessons, Tan allowed the students to operate a vehicle that was registered in his brother's name on the roads in Ubi.
One student later told investigators that he had engaged Fong as his private driving instructor in late 2023.
However, when he arrived for his first lesson, Fong introduced him to Tan instead.
On Apr 4, 2024, Tan took this student for a driving lesson near Ubi.
A traffic police officer stopped the vehicle for a routine check. The student driver told the police that he did not have a driving licence and that he was learning to drive, with Tan as his instructor.
There was no "L" plate displayed on the vehicle, and no brake control installed in the front passenger seat where Tan sat.
The police officer lodged a report that same morning.
Tan was arrested in October 2024 and released on bail. He was charged in court the following month.
Despite this, Tan continued to take on students. Between December 2024 and March 2025, he taught about 40 to 50 students, hiking his fee to S$70 per hour.
He was caught a second time on Mar 2, 2025 when a traffic police officer stopped his vehicle for a routine check in Paya Lebar.
A student was again operating the vehicle with Tan in the passenger seat and a screening revealed that Tan had no driving instructor's licence.
The prosecutor sought four-and-a-half weeks to eight weeks' jail for Tan, along with a fine of S$1,000 and a 12-month driving ban.
She gave a long list of past traffic violations by Tan. These include repeat instances of speeding and running a red light. On other occasions, he failed to wear a seatbelt and was caught for careless driving.
Objecting to the defence's characterisation that Tan's primary motivation was to help his good friend and guide the students, the prosecutor said Tan learned a "lucrative fee".
In response, defence lawyer Ivan Lee Chin Seon acknowledged that his client had "profited", but the jobs were ad hoc and it was not a "steady stream".
He said the fees charged by Tan were also "much less than other drivers" and said a driving school "easily charges S$100 or more".
"He's got the same skill set as a licensed driving instructor," said Mr Lee.
To this, District Judge Kessler Soh said it was "quite speculative" to say this as it had been many years since Tan was licensed.
Mr Lee also said there were no complaints from any of Tan's students about not being guided properly.
In sentencing, Judge Soh said: "I hope you realise that what you did was very serious."
He allowed Tan to defer his sentence to Feb 23.
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Between December 2023 and March 2025, 67-year-old Tan Teng Hock taught an estimated 110 to 130 students for between S$60 (US$47) and S$70 an hour.
The Singaporean was sentenced on Thursday (Feb 5) to five weeks' jail, a fine of S$1,000 and a disqualification from obtaining driving licences for 24 months.
He pleaded guilty to three charges which include being an unlicensed driving instructor and permitting a student to use a vehicle without valid insurance coverage, with a fourth charge taken into consideration.
THE CASE
The court heard that Tan's driving instructor licence expired in March 2001 and he did not renew it.
From December 2023, Tan entered into an arrangement with his friend, 71-year-old Fong Chong Fat, who was a licensed driving instructor.
Fong would refer some of his unsuspecting students to Tan, who would charge them S$60 to S$65 per hour. This gave Tan additional income.
Between December 2023 and April 2024, Tan taught about 70 to 80 students when he did not have a valid driving instructor's licence.
Of these, some were referrals from Fong while others approached him directly. As he did not keep proper records, the students' identities could not be ascertained in investigations.
The students all assumed that Tan was a licensed driving instructor. During the lessons, Tan allowed the students to operate a vehicle that was registered in his brother's name on the roads in Ubi.
One student later told investigators that he had engaged Fong as his private driving instructor in late 2023.
However, when he arrived for his first lesson, Fong introduced him to Tan instead.
On Apr 4, 2024, Tan took this student for a driving lesson near Ubi.
A traffic police officer stopped the vehicle for a routine check. The student driver told the police that he did not have a driving licence and that he was learning to drive, with Tan as his instructor.
There was no "L" plate displayed on the vehicle, and no brake control installed in the front passenger seat where Tan sat.
The police officer lodged a report that same morning.
Tan was arrested in October 2024 and released on bail. He was charged in court the following month.
Despite this, Tan continued to take on students. Between December 2024 and March 2025, he taught about 40 to 50 students, hiking his fee to S$70 per hour.
He was caught a second time on Mar 2, 2025 when a traffic police officer stopped his vehicle for a routine check in Paya Lebar.
A student was again operating the vehicle with Tan in the passenger seat and a screening revealed that Tan had no driving instructor's licence.
MULTIPLE TRAFFIC VIOLATIONS
The prosecutor sought four-and-a-half weeks to eight weeks' jail for Tan, along with a fine of S$1,000 and a 12-month driving ban.
She gave a long list of past traffic violations by Tan. These include repeat instances of speeding and running a red light. On other occasions, he failed to wear a seatbelt and was caught for careless driving.
Objecting to the defence's characterisation that Tan's primary motivation was to help his good friend and guide the students, the prosecutor said Tan learned a "lucrative fee".
In response, defence lawyer Ivan Lee Chin Seon acknowledged that his client had "profited", but the jobs were ad hoc and it was not a "steady stream".
He said the fees charged by Tan were also "much less than other drivers" and said a driving school "easily charges S$100 or more".
"He's got the same skill set as a licensed driving instructor," said Mr Lee.
To this, District Judge Kessler Soh said it was "quite speculative" to say this as it had been many years since Tan was licensed.
Mr Lee also said there were no complaints from any of Tan's students about not being guided properly.
In sentencing, Judge Soh said: "I hope you realise that what you did was very serious."
He allowed Tan to defer his sentence to Feb 23.
Continue reading...