Drivers' eyesight should be checked every 10 years
14 April 2010
The Eye Health Alliance have backed a RAC Foundation report 'Maintaining Safe Mobility for the Aging Population' published today.
"We welcome this contribution to the debate on the safety of older drivers. Good eyesight is important for all drivers to ensure they can see upcoming dangers, read road signs and read the car instrument panel. Requiring all drivers to have regular eye checks throughout their driving careers will mean that eyesight problems are picked up and treated early and ensure that as drivers get older their eyesight is preserved for longer.
As this report recommends, the licence renewal system provides an excellent opportunity for drivers to consider their health at least every ten years and provides not only a more equitable approach to assessing a person's ability to drive but could prevent unnecessary sight loss if vision problems are detected early. We urge the Government to go further and introduce a more scientific based system of vision screening for all drivers.
"Introducing vision screening for drivers when they apply for their licence will also ensure the UK is fully compliant with the EC directive on driving licences. Currently drivers are only required to read a number plate at a distance of 20.5 metres when they take their driving test. Drivers are not legally required to have their eyesight checked until they are 70. The third EC Directive on driving licences will require drivers to have an 'adequate assessment' of their vision which must be implemented by member states by 2013."
The RAC Foundation report recommended:
- Health professionals receiving more training about their responsibilities in relation to carrying out fitness to drive assessments and the legal implications of their actions:
- More research carried out to see whether capability based assessments (reaction time tests, vision tests) could add to existing medical condition assessments (this would have implications for the whole of the driving population, not just older people);
- Car insurance for the senior age group which prices cover at varying levels depending on the risk associated with factors like the time of day older people drive and the type of roads and traffic conditions they expose themselves to;
- An extension to all age groups of the fitness-to-drive declaration currently made when licences are renewed at 70 through the ten-yearly photo card renewal process;
- When renewal forms are sent out at age 70 they should be accompanied by details of voluntary refresher driving courses already being run by local authorities and others; and
- Changes to the road infrastructure — such as simplified signage with a larger type-face, and larger-lens traffic lights — which recognise that older drivers are more likely to be involved in an accident at a junction and at low speeds.
