I took the 6 hour class on line. Very easy. Completed the course and the certificate arrived in the mail within a couple of days. No issues at all. read more

Very dissatisfied with the online course. After I signed up for the online course and paid $44.95, I realized the 6 hour course was too tedious for me and withdrew. I reached out to Empire for a refund and was told they do NOT give refunds. Thieves! This is unacceptable. I advised Empire that I will be filing a dispute within the my credit card company and will go to the media to inform other possible customers of this debacle. read more

Don't use Empire Safety Council. I would never use them again for a defensive driving class. It took a two months to receive my certificate after making multiple phone calls. They charged a five dollar fee for resending because they claimed I didn't put my apartment number on the form. When I asked to speak to a supervisor they told me she was busy. The person I talked to said give me your number and maybe she will call me back. I eventually went to pick up the form at their office. I work in Deer Park and live in Islip which was a major inconvenience. When I got home the form was in the mail. Their office seems to be very disorganized. I thought $60 is way overpriced. My advice is to take the defensive driving class at your local Library. read more

Wish I had read YELP first!!! Bought the class on Friday. Already charged to my account. Got logged out & wouldnt let me log back in until I called Monday. They gave me a generic passcode. While you're i the sessions (11) it will Do not let you go to the next page until their timer finishes sometimes you'll be finished reading before the timer and you have to wait. Several times while you're in the sessions a caller ID verification number will pop up you have to call it right away and verify for some reason and I don't understand why because I already paid for the class! right now the caller ID verification is frozen on my screen and there's nobody in the office to help me there's no live chat! I am not closing out this webpage until I speak to somebody at this company I want a refund this is a ridiculous company and I'm going to get another class online. Hopefully they will refund me since course does not work! Tony@empiresafetycouncil.com They have NOT responded to my emails nor refunded me. The course has not been completed & I took my business elsewhere to MYImprov I already completed it & received my certificate already! read more

They're A+ On a Saturday, I took their 6 hour Accident Prevention class given by James T. He was knowledgeable, friendly, and made the six hours fly by quickly. Surprisingly, I received my Certificate in the mail six days later. Don't hesitate to take Empire Safety Council's Accident Prvention workshop. I highly recommend them. read more

Taking the defensive driving class in person is so much better than online. I find it to be much more interesting and informative, I can ask questions and get in-person interactive conversion. The 6 hours that is needed to be in the classroom is well worth the HUNDREDS of $$$ dollars you will save on your insurance for the next 3 years. read more

I recommend taking the 6hour classroom class. The six hours really does go fast and the in person atmosphere allows you to ask questions and get answers. read more

Son took course after asking if it was for a driving test and it is not the correct course as prerequisite for drivers test. They wouldn't refund and stated that it is good that h took it to save 10% on insurance and removes 4 points if needed and the appropriate course doesn't. This is untrue after we looked it up. Wasted our time and money. read more

I rarely post negative ratings, but this agency is outrageous. The first problem was that I was never able to start the Defensive Driving course because it always requested to call their 800 number. But my number was never recognized. No one answered when I called the number posted on the website, except once, to which they told me that my phone number was not recognized and that there was no other way to prove it was me. When I emailed Tony@empiresafetycouncil.com, they replied and stated that they recognized my phone number. I replied, hoping that the issue would be solved. I didn't hear from anyone. I tried again to log in, it asked me again to call, again it did not recognize my number. My course time is about to expire, I have never heard from anyone, one side recognizes the number but not the other, I never got access to the program. read more

If you are looking to take a course to get the 10% insurance reduction, I would HIGHLY recommend you look elsewhere. The setup of the website is very antiquated. Also, for each page of every session (and there are 11 total sessions), you cannot move forward until a timer tells you that you may move on. For all pages, I was done reading the information much quicker than the time they set for the page. I was usually done at least one minute earlier than the page allowed. This required a lot of waiting on my part. The worst part, for me, was you had to verify your identity every so often. The computer would prompt you to call a phone number in a matter of seconds from a phone you had specified. I was taking a session, I got the prompt, and didn't realize my husband had my phone! There was no way I could call. I was just starting session 7 and THE PROGRAM MADE ME START FROM THE BEGINNING! I had to go back to session 1! I called the company to see if they could help and the first person I spoke with was pretty unsympathetic. She then put me through to a male (the owner? - he did not identify himself) who was rude, condescending and content to do nothing to help as, "it's NYS law" and there is no, "refund policy." Bottom line I would not use Empire Safety Council again and certainly will not use its online course. It has proven to be more aggravating and time-intensive than taking one day to attend a similar course from an instructor. read more

If you ever need to take a Defensive Driving Course. make sure you sign up when Roger C. Is the instructor. He is the only one teaching this course who delivers all the information required while at the same time entertains the entire class for the full six hours of the course. I look forward to taking the code with him every the years. read more

I took a course on January 13, 2018. The certification has not shown up on my abstract still in August. The woman who answered the phone at Empire told me it will not show up unless I reach 11 points on my license. I called DMV and 2 reps told me this is not correct. I called Empire back and the woman was very rude. She basically said DMV doesn't know what they are talking about AND pretty much told me not to call back. I am waiting for DMV to call me back to discuss this and plan to lodge a complaint. So this Maritza totally ignored what I said about the rudeness of the rep who answered the phone. I am not confused about the point reduction. They are giving out wrong Information about the course showing up on my abstract. The DMV just emailed me to say there was a transmission error and it should absolutely should show up regardless of points. Excuse me but I think I'll trust what DMV says before Empire Safety. I'll be taking this course through AARP in the future. read more

Horrible customer service! I called to find out about having a promotion code applied as a returning customer - the fee I was billed was different than what was presented at the time of payment because a promotion was not applied. Without provocations, the customer service representative was dismissive, short, and rude. I was told to "try going to Old Navy to see if they would apply a promotion code after a sale". This person then hung up the phone on me. Needless to say, for an approximate $10 discrepancy I will not be taking a class with this company again, not will my family members or friends. read more

The worst place to conduct your defensive driving: I completed the online course in October of 2014; at the time of this review I haven't received the certificate. I called on five occasions, even paid $5 extra to have a "duplicate" sent to my mother's address. It's 1/8/2015, I don't have the certificate! Spoke to two girls, who wouldn't give their names, nor would they give the address so I can come pick up the certificate. Something shady here. I've got something for them though! They won't be in business for much longer. read more

Our instructor kathy O'Brien was great! She made me feel comfortable in the class. I think everyone should be taking the drivers defense course not only for insurance purposes but mostly to become better drivers! read more

They are the worst!! I took the course months ago and still haven't received my certificate. I emailed them and no response. I called them and they wanted $5 to mail it to me. I'm not sure how they are still in business. read more

The instructor made the class very interesting which made the 6 hours fly by. I learned (relearned) a lot of useful information that will increase my safety on the road. Everyone should take this course not just for a point reduction or for the insurance discount but to improve your knowledge which will increase your safety. read more

THE WORST COMPANY KNOWN TO MAN. The supervisor was extremely rude, calling me ridiculous and absurd for asking them to waive a $5 fee after THEY messed up where to send my certificate....I tried calling to complain (because he certainly needs to be fired for his awful customer service) but sadly he's the only one you can talk to. NEVER pay them a cent. They suck. read more

Wanted to update about my miserable experience with Empire Safety Council. Made a complaint to Better Buisiness , waste of time, he doesn't respond.. Made a complaint to THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OFFICE. He responded to them with lies, which is a Class A Misdemeanor. My husband was sitting right next to me when I was speaking to the President of Empire Safety Counsil Mr William Bonds. He heard the whole conversation with this miserable man. Also put a dispute in which my credit card company he doesn't respond to them either. . If my credit card company didn't refund my money, I would have had no problem taking this man to small claims court. It's not about the money, it's about all the people he's taken advantage of over the years. Read his reviews, there's about 20 on The Better Buisiness website. So if you have a problem with this company get in touch which your Attorney General office. read more

Do not expect a certificate after course completion. If you call do not expect a resolution. I completed a defensive driving course and called thrive to get my course completion certificate. Nothing! Spoke to Tony and others and supervisor. Was told not to waste their time. Scamsters. Try AARP for def driving. Accessible to all. read more

I completed my Defensive Driving course with Empire at my place of business (the instructor was very good). That's where it all went downhill. I did not receive a copy of the certificate. I called up Empire Safety requesting a certificate to be sent to my home and was told I would have to pay for it. The amount was not the issue, but the fact that I was being asked to pay for something I never received was. Little did I know that would be the least concerning part of my call. I asked the woman on the phone if it is possible for mail to get lost and she told me I would have to buy another copy. Whenever I uttered another word, all she replied with was 'Are you going to buy it or not?' This was extremely rude and disrespectful way to treat a customer. I never once raised my tone with this woman nor was rude to her. She proceeded to get someone (who I imagine was her supervisor) on the phone. This gentleman was extremely rude and berated me on the phone after I simply tried to explain my problem. His tone was belligerent immediately and he advised that all mail is tracked. Again when I inquired whether a piece of mail could have been lost, he said no. When I explained that the only way to ensure that the mail reached the hands of the recipient was a signature receipt, he proceeded to call me a moron, dope, and stupid for not knowing how mail works. He also kept saying calling me a 'big businessman' simply because I took the course at my place of work. After I asked him why he was berating me loudly and not being professional he further mocked me explaining that all his yelling was his Bronx accent. He then hung up on me after calling me several other names. By far I have never had such a poor customer service experience in my life. I since found out the person on the phone was the owner (!) of Empire. If not for the excellent instructor this review would have received one stars. read more

Terrible terrible terrible! ‍ I wish I would have gone to do the 6 hour course in a classroom rather than having endured that torture. There are 11 sessions PLUS a final exam with 50 questions. Each page on the sessions is timed anywhere from a minute and a half to 4 mins, u can not go on to the next page until time is up. At the end of each session there is a quiz of about 5 questions that are timed, if u get 2 questions wrong u have to start the WHOLE session over! The reading material gets very repetitive, and steers away from defensive driving at many points. To give you an example there was an entire session on narcotics. It was like taking a REALLY REALLY REALLY LONG permit test. Many times the site locked me out and wouldn't recognize my username and I had to wait until morning to call the office and the man who answered fixed this issue but this happened a handful of times. The course seemed way longer than 6hrs. The 1st session alone has about 26 pages of reading material. I will not be taking this course again. ‍ read more

I had the same experience as Hilary. I was also done reading the information much quicker than the time they set for EVERY SINGLE page. I think a first grader could have read it in half the allotted time. Like Hilary, I got kicked out of the program because even though they give you 3 minutes to read one paragraph, you get only 30 seconds to make the verification phone call. I was ready, phone in hand, but the call just wasn't connecting fast enough, so I got kicked out. No big deal though, as they say you can restart right where you left off. WRONG! The program sent me back to session one after spending half of my day off sitting in front of a computer. I called customer service, calmly explaining what happened, only to be literally SCREAMED at, and subsequently hung up on. DO NOT WASTE your time or money on Empire Safety Council. Absolutely horrible. read more

I work for a Law Firm in NYC. I have a client who took this course bc he is a TLC driver. He took it in March 2014 and as of today it still isnt on his drivers record. I called Empire Safety Council after speaking with albany to confirm they did not have it. I spoke to the most unhelpful man (with a deep voice) He would not answer any of my questions and tried to speak on a topic that not only was i more aware then he was but was nothing to what i was trying to get at. He refused to give me his name and tried to tell me that ppl in "cablevisIon" DO NOT GIVE OUT NAMES !!! Is this guy serious... that only showed me that this place is SHADEYYYYYY DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY FIND ANOTHER PLACE TO CONDUCT THIS COURSE !!!!!!!! . He started to get nasty, telling me "If you be quiet and listen"..... meanwhile I was trying to explain the situation. He avoided all my questions at all cost and got really rude and stupid threatened to HANG UP ON ME ! after all that i told him i would be pursuing legal action and i hung up first ! He told me that they electronically submitt this yet claims they dont have proof .... guy was a complete liar and ASSHOLE ! read more

Terrible customer service. If you want to pay money and not receive a certificate, deal with these people.

If I could give them 0 stars, I would. My husband and I took the defensive driving course given by one of their approved instructors on June 22, 2016. We have never received any certificate as of today, Sept. 2, and after repeated calls we are still being told the certificates were "sent out for processing" and that they would be sent to me "next week." My check was cashed right away though! We feel we were scammed for $100 by the instructor, Jim F. , and Empire Safety Council. Do yourself a favor and take the online course given by NYS Improv and print your certificate out 30 minutes after completing the course and it only cost $32.45 each. Don't get involved with the D-Fence Driving instructor, Jim F., and Empire Safety Council. read more

Empire Safety Council is owned and operated by Bill Bonds who is one of the rudest obnoxious people I have had the displeasure of speaking with. If you call with a problem be prepared to be verbally abused, yelled at, cursed at and hung up on. I would strongly recommend you find another provider of services. If you have a problem and cannot complete your course, he will not give you a refund. He'll tell you how stupid you are. read more

The online course is one of the most poorly executed I have ever seen. Never try to call this place, they don't even bother listening to the question before resorting to shouting. read more

I always read negative reviews with a grain of salt but my experience today supports all the negative comments about the ugly owner on the phone. I was asking for a receipt for the class I paid for in June. When I said he has an obligation as a vendor to supply a receipt for the services I paid for, he told me to get it from my bank and don't tell him how to run his business and hung up on me. Don't give this guy your money there are plenty of other places to take this course. read more

This place is a joke. My nephew took the class at the Bellport Library - he told the instructor that he needed the certificate for a court date. The instructor was very nice, gave him his card and said it would be no problem , he would have it in 3 weeks. Here we are, 6 weeks later, no certificate! We called the office and got the rudest woman imaginable- she would not look up anything in the computer without his driver's license number, date and location of the class and the instructor's name! (I had the date and location - why couldn't she look it up with that info?) - Anyway - when I finally got the info to her she said "oh this instructor is famous for handing in his paperwork late" - but still wouldn't help me! I asked if she could just write a letter on company letterhead, she said "no" - she would not/could not do anything. She just kept saying "it takes up to 6 weeks" (we called one day shy of 6 weeks)!! When I asked for her name, she said "we do not give names", When I asked for a supervisor or owner's name - she hung up on me. So we tracked down the instructor himself and he, too was completely no help. Although he remembered my nephew, he said there was nothing he could do - I even wrote the letter FOR HIM and asked him to simply put it on letterhead and sign it - but I still haven't heard back from him - so now I will have to pay a lawyer to attend the court date and have it adjourned and hope and pray that I will eventually get this certificate. Something is fishy with this place.... read more

i never got my certificate and i was charged the full amount! they dont have any costumer service so u cant talk to anyone. i would recommend u all not to use them! read more

its the worst website to get a defensive driving course. at first i was supposed to get a discount after registering for the course, but i did not get it. if you don't pass a session you have to start from the beginning. there's 11 sessions after every session you have to take a quiz.if you get 2 answers wrong you have to start from the beginning.you also have to wait 2 min on every page before you move on, even if you finish reading the material before that time.i spent 3 hours on the first session and it only said i was there 39 min. they won't give you your money back. i called customers service and they were very rude. i kept calling them and they just hung up the phone read more