Is over 80 too old to be driving?

My mother (who lives with us) is 89 and still drives. She will not drive at night or in bad weather and generally her journeys are under 6 miles (no buses here either). Her eyesight is good, though her spatial awareness is not, so parking can be a close run thing and her bumpers are covered in scrapes and scratches. In general she drives during the middle of the day and avoids rush hour, and though I don't think she's dangerous as a driver, her awareness of others on the road is not as sharp as it should be. My worry? When her license was renewed last year she went through no test or doctors check, it was just sent from the DVLA. Whilst she is in good health both physically and mentally they had no way of knowing this.

There is a graph on this article that seems to illustrate that we become safer drivers as we get older. And then after 70 less safe. Difficult to draw too many conclusions as it is total numbers of people killed - rather than how many killed per mile of driving.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24204489

There are many older drivers who are extremely competent. Their experience and greater caution probably compensate for a decline in reaction times. Older drivers are probably more cautious too, but I can think of a few exceptions.
However there are increasing numbers of very old drivers - the numbers of people living into their 80s and 90s has increased sharply.
And some of these are no longer good drivers because if we live long enough, the chances of having some sensory or cognitive impairment increases sharply.
A relative of mine is struggling with a husband with Altzheimer's. He is still convinced he is OK to drive and has tantrums if thwarted. His memory clinic last summer seemed to think he was OK to drive, but he can't remember how to use household equipment these days. His wife is afraid that he will hurt someone or get lost. A friend of theirs (a retired psychiatrist who specialised in Altzheimer's) agrees that he no longer has the ability to respond if he encounters anything unexpected while driving on his own.
I think it is time that the government and DVLA stopped shrugging off the responsibility for this. The onus is currently on the driver to let them know if they are not fit to drive and this is not good enough. I would be in favour of a 3 year licence renewal scheme, starting at 80, with a compulsory eye test required combined with some kind of test of competence - either on the road or on a computer simulation. (could offer a choice for those who don't like computers).
Anyone know what happens in other countries?

Well here in France you don't even have to renew your licence at 70! All my neighbours still drive well into their eighties and nineties. There is no public transport abd very little traffic but there are some we dread meeting on the narrow country roads.
I agree there should be a test of reaction times post 80.

JessM I may be wrong on the age but I'm sure my neighbours who lived by us in Spain where tested every 2 yrs at a test centre on a simulated screen to gauge their competence I think it was either at 70 or 75,they also underwent a compulsary eyetest at the same time.

The Institute for Advanced Drivers does assessments for older drivers. It is done in your car in your area and at the end they will assess your driving suggest things you need to improve, if appropriate and also that you should stop driving if they think your skills have deteriorated too much.

The problem is that every time an elderly person is involved in a serious accident, especially with fatalities, the newspapers run with it and do the full shock horror, should older drivers be on the road? Meanwhile three fatal accidents involving younger drivers will be half a column on the lower part of page 45.

That tragic accident in Sweden that killed all the members of the Indie band, Viola Beach, seems to have been caused by bad, reckless driving. I have yet to see any journalists rise up and demand that men under 20 or between 30 and 35 (depending on whether it was a band member or the manager who was driving) or should be tested every year or made to stop driving at their ages.

It depends on the person surely, not age. There are bad drivers of all ages and none of them think they are.

I'm nearly 80 and still drive, but agree with those who suggest a refresher course for older drivers. I would appreciate being told what my weak points are, and how to improve them.
I don't drive at nights now ( since a wild boar ran into our van one dark rainy night), and avoid busy roads if possible.
Luckily the roads here are quiet.