Older drivers. Should we take a test at 75?

Reading the OP it does seem sensible.
I am 67, could I pass a test at 75 I don't know.
The driver in the above post should not have been driving. My heart goes out to the parents of the toddler.

I think it should be younger than 70 and repeated!

Sorry.
I meant to say should be checked at maybe 70 and then repeated.

One of my friends wasn't fit to drive ever in my opinion!
My mother-in-law was still driving pretty well at 96 but was advised not to drive after a TIA.

I think that would be a sensible move. The Edinburgh case was horrific. I remember covering a court case years ago where an elderly man had pulled out from a side road and collided with a motorbike - the rider was killed. It later transpired that the elderly man's eyesight was so bad that he could legally be registered as blind. He should never have been behind the wheel. My FiL always told us to let him know if we felt it was time for him to stop driving, but luckily he came to that conclusion for himself before that time came.

We were really concerned about my father in laws driving last year . He will be 95 this weekend. My hubbie and mil wanted to talk to him about it , but he just shut them down . He crashed his car in the end last summer . He was reversing out of a space in our local supermarket. He put his foot on the accelerator instead of the brake and shot back into parked car . They were so lucky no one was hurt . He's not driven since , I think , if he'd had to do some sort of test before the accident, he wouldn't have passed

65 yearly //3 wrecks from over 70s last summer ,eyes and ears too

Sorry dotpocka I'm not sure what you mean?

My husband is in his mid seventies and wants to sit another test, he is not a happy driver anyway and says that if he fails we will just have to get used to public transport. Tbh we use the trains and buses a lot already.
I certainly would not want him to still be driving in his 90s.
Better to be safe than sorry. Really sad 😞 news about the toddler killed.

I cannot help thinking that the black box brought in for willing new drivers to help with their insurance costs, would be good if it was the norm for everyone. However yes I have seen some who can hardly react fast enough walking and I think we might all need confirmation of our abilities as we age so taking it out of families hands with a regular test might be helpful when we can’t face facts.

If that was introduced, the market would be flooded with second hand cars😄😄😄

I’ll be 70 next week and I recently had to reapply for my driving licence to comply with the DVLA guidance. I was surprised that the form was just ticking boxes to confirm that I was fit to drive and my eyesight remains good. It asked if I’d had a recent eye test but I wasn’t asked to provide a date or the name of the optician. So, really anyone can just tick yes to everything and send off the form.

I have thought this for many years. There are many more cars on the road these days and driving conditions are definitely worse than when I passed my test. If it was the law, we would all know it was coming. Reactions, eyesight and physical strength generally decline as we get older and we are not always aware of it. I would propose the first retest at 70, then 75 and after that 80. After the age of eighty, I think it should be an annual test. There could be a two strikes policy for each test so that if you fail one test you get a chance to retake it. If a second test is failed, then you could be offered the opportunity of a course of lessons with the test at the end being the final chance, or you could decide that this is the time to give up driving. Public transport needs to be improved at the same time otherwise, sadly. there will be more tragedies like this one - there have been several like this in the past, unfortunately.

Prince Phillip was 97 when he had an accident in his car!!!!

This recent case does make a case for cognitive assessment.

Mental alertness, or its lack, is the main cause of driving failure. It leads people to make the kind of errors this lady met. That and poor eyesight.

I think when you renew your licence each three years you should have to submit a copy of a current eye test, taken within three months of the application date.

The eye test requirment could be brought in almost immediately for next to no cost. Cognition tests could be administered in the doctor;' surgery by a nurse.

I had to do them twice last year when I was erroneously diagnosed with a stroke. I got full marks each time. I do not find it a coincidence that having done so well in the cognition tests, twice in the last three months, Tow people I have seperately given a lift to have said how safe they found my driving, they were presumably expecting me not to be safe driver because of my age. I am 80.

My father was driving quite safely in his 90s. He was full mentally alert and an active member of three local groups. He still organised outings for the NT, was the major domo at his local church, organising all the funerals weddings etc, and leafleting and campaigning for the political party he supported.

I do understand people's concerns because i was the victim when an elderly man, clearly not fit to be driving, drove into my car and did serious damage. I was on a roundabout drivng at about 20mph, he was doing about 10mph and I was clearly visible for several hundred yards, yet on his accident report said he did not see me and said I had come onto the roundabout at speed from an access road that I had not been on

YorkLady

Prince Phillip was 97 when he had an accident in his car!!!!

Exactly!

My Mother in law was sensible enough to know when to stop driving, unlike someone else we know who had numerous crashes and was later discovered to have limited eyesight or capacity.

I’m 75 - I’d be happy to take a test. I’d have some lessons first to make sure I’m up to date. I did a speed awareness course a few years ago. I learned a lot - I’d been caught doing 36 in a 30 zone. I’d genuinely thought I was in a 40 zone.

I wonder if we should all resit our tests, not just at 75. I passed my test when I was 18, that’s a long time ago.

All those wanting to be re-tested, I assume that includes the theory test as well?

None of us had to do that one when we were 17.

I think a test at 70, then 75 and then 80 is a good idea . And I think it’s a good idea to have a few refresher lessons prior to the test .
Where I live there’s a big elderly population and some of them definitely shouldn’t be driving .
My mother decided herself that she shouldn’t be driving about 3 years ago aged 86 .

I gave up driving voluntarily a few years back because I felt my eyesight wasn’t good enough but so many older people seem unable to accept that their sight and reflexes have deteriorated. I think M0nica’s idea is a good one.

The thought of having to take a test terrifies me. I’d be lost without my car. I only travel to look after my grandchildren in the holidays or babysit at night. Take my dog to the vets. Go for eg eye tests ( the next town isn’t on a direct bus route). With my partner being bashed and bruised I’m having to drive him to the doctors. I’ve never really driven on fast roads with slip roads ( I hate slip roads). I would have thought a proper medical including an eye test would suffice? Or having to prove that an eye test has been taken recently ( note to self, need to get one booked soon).I’m sure older drivers cause far fewer accidents than 17 year olds who are uber confident and who I always make allowances for when they speed through my village. When my partner had to go to A&E on Saturday it cost him £50 in taxi fares and neither of us like using public transport these days as we’re worried about covid.

Musicgirl

I have thought this for many years. There are many more cars on the road these days and driving conditions are definitely worse than when I passed my test. If it was the law, we would all know it was coming. Reactions, eyesight and physical strength generally decline as we get older and we are not always aware of it. I would propose the first retest at 70, then 75 and after that 80. After the age of eighty, I think it should be an annual test. There could be a two strikes policy for each test so that if you fail one test you get a chance to retake it. If a second test is failed, then you could be offered the opportunity of a course of lessons with the test at the end being the final chance, or you could decide that this is the time to give up driving. Public transport needs to be improved at the same time otherwise, sadly. there will be more tragedies like this one - there have been several like this in the past, unfortunately.

I agree that it would be a good idea to have one at 70, then every 5 years, then annually after 80, with the two strike policy Musicgirl outlined.

My mother drove until she was 97, and would not stop, saying she was just as good as she was when she started. I only solved it by making an appointment for her with her optician and telling them my worries about her driving.

I think some people of that age can't make a rational decision about it, and having compulsory tests would prevent them going on driving too long.

I think it is a good idea but if it is brought in I would give up driving immediately. I am a safe but nervous driver and in a test would be a bundle of nerves and unable to function sensibly.

I agree a test at 70, 75 and 80, I would have no compunction taking the appropriate steps if I felt someone was dangerous, I did it to my Mum. I’d never forgive myself if I could’ve stopped an accident.

I’m in favour of ongoing driving assessments from (say) 75, but unless someone is so unsafe as to fail one completely, I think they should be just assessments with recommendations.
I consider myself a competent driver, doing 15,000 miles every year on every sort of road, but as I have white coat syndrome, totally unreasonably, having an official test where my license would be at risk would scare me witless!