This post was originally published in October 2018 and revised in June 2024 by other contributors
Image courtesy of Unsplash
Many of our families love the fact that their au pair can help with school drop off and shuttling the kids around town. But how can you evaluate your potential au pair’s driving abilities while you’re in the interview phase?
We recommend that you ask your au pair probing, open-ended questions about their driving history and experience. Here are several examples to get you started.
- When did you get your driver’s license?
- If you’re looking for an au pair with lots of driving experience, you may want to consider the amount of time an au pair has had their driver’s license. Keep in mind, the ages when a license is obtained can vary country to country, and au pairs must be between the ages of 18-26, so they may not have had the opportunity to have years of driving experience yet.
- What’s the process to receive a driver’s license in your country?
- In some countries, there may be a written and practical exam similar to the U.S., but in other countries prerequisite training may also be a necessary component. In Germany, for example, it is necessary to know how to change a tire in order to obtain your driver’s license.
- How many days per week do you drive?
- Even if an au pair hasn’t had their license for a lengthy period of time, the frequency they drive can elevate their experience tremendously. For example, if your au pair has only had a driver’s license for six months, but they drive two hours daily, it’s more experience than someone who has had their license for two years, but only drives occasionally.
- Where do you drive to?
- Be sure to also ask how far these locations are. For example, how many miles (or kilometers) away is your school or work that you drive to daily?
- What types of roads do you drive on?
- It’s important to consider if your au pair’s driving experience is limited to country roads or includes multilane highways.
- What type of car do you drive?
- Chances are your au pair’s car will not be as big as the car they’re transporting your children in; however, it’s important to know what size car they have experience driving. You can also ask them specifically if they’ve ever driven a minivan or SUV (or the type of car your au pair will be driving) to better understand if they have had that experience before. Don’t be discouraged if they haven’t!
- Is your car a manual or an automatic?
- In many countries, it is more common to drive a manual than an automatic car. Don’t be surprised if your au pair has never driven an automatic car before. While it will take some getting used to, most au pairs say driving an automatic car is far easier than driving a manual one.
- Have you driven with children in the car before?
- It can be helpful to learn about your au pair’s experience transporting children by car. Follow-up questions and discussion can include seatbelt usage, car seat laws, and overall safety parameters when driving with kids. This is a great way to open up a discussion about children and car safety.
- Have you ever been in an accident? What happened?
- While accidents can happen to anyone, learning about an au pair’s driving record can be helpful in knowing more about their experience. Your au pair should be open and honest about their driving past. Be empathetic if your au pair shares about a past driving accident with you.
- What’s the longest you’ve ever driven for?
- If your au pair has taken long road trips or commuted lengthy distances, it’s a good indicator that they’ve driven on major highways and relied on GPS for directions. If they haven’t, that’s ok! They may not have had the opportunity to do so, yet!
- Do you like driving? Why or why not?
- This is a great question to get more information about your au pair’s interest in this particular responsibility and see if they’ll be a good fit for your home. If you know driving is a big part of the au pair role for your family, and your au pair answers how much they loathe being behind the wheel, it may be an indicator this isn’t the best fit. Don’t be discouraged, that’s what the interview process is for! It could also open up a discussion to the au pair about the reality of driving in their role and something they may want to be more open-minded about in becoming an au pair with your family if all other aspects align.
- What driving situations make you nervous?
- Open-ended questions like these make for a great starting point to bring up area-specific driving considerations like weather and traffic. Use it as a way to spark that conversation.
- Have you driven in snow or heavy rain?
- While your au pair’s home country may not present these types of weather-related driving conditions, it doesn’t hurt to ask if you live somewhere where your au pair will be faced with them.
- What are the usual speed limits for the roads you drive on?
- This can help you better understand the driving environment your au pair is coming from, offering a little more insight to their driving experience.
- Have you ever gotten lost while driving? If so, what did you do?
- A great way to learn more about your au pair’s personality and how they handle potentially stressful situations, especially behind the wheel!
- Tell us what you do to stay safe when driving.
- Safety is always a top priority, especially when it comes to driving. Things you’ll want to hear are checking mirrors and putting on seat belts before driving, not texting or using a cell phone when behind the wheel, etc. If your au pair doesn’t think of these things to say in their answer, you can also ask specifically. For example, “Do you ever use a cell phone while driving?”.
We tend to forget that driving comes with its own cultural norms that are very different than driving in the USA. Here are some other tips to help you screen your potential au pair’s driving experience.
- Research the process for obtaining a driver’s license in the au pair’s home country. Some European countries are much more strict than the U.S. when it comes to receiving a license.
- Use Google maps to look at the au pair’s town and the routes that they typically take. This way, you can see the types of roads they’re driving on.
- Keep cultural differences in mind. Roads and vehicles in the USA are much bigger than in the rest of the world and we communicate in miles per hour instead of kilometers. Not to mention, we drive on the opposite side of the road to many of our au pairs!
Once your au pair arrives, be patient with their driving in the beginning. Being comfortable on the roads is key, and it may take some time for your au pair to adjust. This adjustment period is totally normal. With practice and positive reinforcement, your au pair will be driving with confidence in no time!