John's car is a company one so insurance is arranged by them and Joe's not insured which is a pain.
He's had 27 lessons so far. Tom had around 35 before he took his test. The instructor is someone John knows from cycling and I remember that he taught another cycling friend's son after Tom and this fella asked John if he thought he was being ripped off as his son was up to 30 lessons before being told to book a test. It seems about right but it's a right drain on the bank account though.