Heavy Combination Course
Is This The Right Licence For You?
Click here for the latest information from VicRoads about heavy vehicle training and assessment during Stage 4 Restrictions.
A Heavy Combination (HC) licence is required for a prime mover to which is attached a single semi-trailer that has a GVM greater than 9 tonnes. A HC licence is also required for a rigid vehicle to which is attached a trailer greater than 9 tonnes GVM.
A Heavy Combination (HC) licence is generally required for the following driving roles:
- Container Transport
- Refrigerated Transport
- Road Construction & Quarry Driver
- Bulk Garden Supplies
- Heavy General Freight
- Tanker Driver
Further information and an overview of the road transport industry, employment prospects, weekly earnings, current vacancies, and whether you’re the right fit for the industry can be found here.
Course Options
Armstrongs offer a range of weekday and weekend courses. Depending on the amount of behind-the-wheel training you want, students can choose from the following course options.
| Course Type | Length | Fee | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy Combination Semi-Automatic (Express) | 1.5 days | $1890.00 |
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| Heavy Combination Semi-Automatic (Plus) Beginner | 2 days | $2545.00 |
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| Heavy Combination Driver Delivery Program | 8 days | Fully Subsidised | Course Details | |
As at 1 July 2019, the VicRoads Assessment Fee of $30.80 will be payable to Armstrongs on behalf of VicRoads upon the successful completion of all heavy vehicle assessments. Upon payment of the VicRoads Assessment Fee, Armstrongs will issue a paper VicRoads Certificate of Competency (CoC) receipt which must be taken to VicRoads and is to be used as evidence of the successful completion of all heavy vehicle assessment criteria. Upon payment of the VicRoads Licence Variation Fee of $31.50 VicRoads will issue a paper licence which is to be used as evidence of holding a valid Victorian Heavy Vehicle Licence. VicRoads will mail out a plastic consolidated heavy vehicle/car/rider licence which may take up to 10 business days.
† Expereinced HC course only available using Semi-Automatic gearbox configuration.
* All heavy vehicle training conducted on a Saturday will attract an additional $120.00. Where a student's course takes place over successive Saturdays, or a series of Saturdays, students will be charged $$120.00 for every Saturday that the student's course is delivered. Weekend course fees will also be charged if all, or any part thereof, of the course takes place on a Victorian Public Holiday.
Course Overview
Armstrongs' heavy combination course has been custom designed to develop vital driving skills and knowledge necessary to successfully gain your heavy combination licence.
The course consists of the following components:
- Optional Pre-drive Theory Session*
- Driver Training
Course fees cover both the optional Pre-drive theory session, driver training, and access to Career Central. Terms and conditions apply.
*Students have the choice of completing the Pre-Drive Licence Component either (i) as part of their course or (ii) in addition to their course. Students with language, literacy, or numeracy concerns are advised to attend a Pre-Drive session in addition to their driving course. Pre-Drive sessions are delivered face-to-face by a qualified heavy vehicle trainer and are 4 hours in length during which students will guided through the relevant information in preparation for their theory test and undergo off-road training and assessment. For those students who wish to complete their Pre-Drive Licence Component within their course, the amount of behind-the-wheel training that a student ordinarily receives will be reduced by that amount of time that an individual student requires to successfully complete the Pre-Drive Licence Component.
Training Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the course students will be able to:
- Correctly start, steer, position, manoeuvre, and stop the vehicle
- Correctly managing engine power to minimise gear and engine wear
- Reverse, maintain visibility, and accurately position the vehicle
- Correctly park, shut down and secure the vehicle
- Successfully identify and avoid hazards (defensive driving)
- Safely load the vehicle and use the most appropriate load restraint method
- Correctly conduct coupling & un-coupling procedures
Pre-requisites & Entry Requirements
- A current Australian Driver's Licence card; and have held a medium or heavy rigid licence for minimum of 12 months; a secondary form of ID is also required; please refer to Armstrongs' Terms and Conditions for details
- You must be competent in the operation of a manual vehicle; and have obtained your licence in a manual vehicle.
- All training and assessment is conducted in English so a practical level of English language comprehension is required. Student's whose first language is not English must contact Armstrongs before booking a course to better assess their suitability to undertake this course and restrictions around the use of interpreters during training and assessment. Failure to do this may result in any course fees paid being forfeited.
Required Training Materials
All required training materials will be provided by Armstrongs upon course payment.
eLearning is available to all students to support their learning, access to this is available through the Resources page of our website.
What's Included in Your Course
All courses come with:
- Unlimited Optional Pre-Drive Theory Sessions Prior To Your Driver Training
Armstrongs takes the stress out of preparing for, and sitting, your theory test and off-road skills assessment. If you don't feel that you're ready to sit your theory test after your first Pre-Drive Session, simply come to as many Pre-Drive sessions as you like before your driver training commences at no additional cost. You'll also get one free theory retest. - Free and unlimited access to 'Career Central'
Armstrongs' Career Central is a digital employment market place where Armstrongs heavy vehicle licence graduates and employers can come together and connect. Once you obtain your licence you'll be able to upload your CV, search for, and view listed driving jobs, receive job alerts, and directly apply for driving jobs advertised on our Career Central platform whenever you like. Click here for more information on Career Central and how it can help you.
Depending on the course type you choose, you’ll also get:
- Express - Two Attempts to Pass Your Driving Assessment
Assessments can be stressful and nerves can sometimes cause students to make simple driving errors. That's why all Armstrongs Express heavy vehicle courses include an additional re-test*+. That means you'll have two attempts to pass your driving assessment at no additional cost! - Plus - Three Attempts to Pass Your Driving Assessment
If you want more, then you'll get more with a Licence Plus course. Apart from more behind-the-wheel training than any other Armstrongs course, you'll get three attempts at passing your driving assessment+.
*Where a student requires a third retest or more, the third retest and any subsequent retest will be charged at $250.00 per retest.
+Armstrongs additional re-testing policy does not include additional training required before an additional/included re-test is undertaken. Additional training costs apply.
By booking a heavy vehicle license training course you are acknowledging acceptance of Armstrongs heavy vehicle terms and conditions of sale.