[RahulNagaraj]

According to media reports, elderly drivers in the UK aged 70 years and above could soon be mandated to take an eye test before being allowed to drive on public roads. A Road Safety Organisation has recently come out and criticised the current eye test requirements for older drivers, calling them out of date.

Rob Heard, founder of the Older Drivers Forum - a non-profit organisation run by the Hampshire Constabulary Road Safety Team, has stated that while other countries in Europe mandate regular eye tests, UK drivers are subjected to them only twice in their driving career; once during the driving test and the other when asked by a police officer to read a number plate 20 metres away.



The comments from Heard came after a recent incident where a 95-year-old motorist killed a mobility scooter user on a pedestrian crossing. The Senior Coroner presiding over the case also highlighted that while drivers over 70 years apply for a licence every three years, they are not required to undergo a medical check to assess their fitness to drive. The coroner further added that drivers are allowed to self-declare their health status. The coroner stated, "Without checks, a driver might be oblivious to their medical condition, posing a serious threat to other road users."

Reports state that of the 41.5 million people with a full driving licence in the UK, 6.25 million are aged above 70 years. Also, this number is said to be increasing at the rate of 2,50,000 per year, and one condition they are all likely to share is failing eyesight.

Heard mentioned that as people age, their distance and peripheral vision deteriorate. This causes a decline in their eyes' ability to adapt quickly to changing light. Reports also state that while a 70-year-old driver is no more likely to have an accident than a younger driver, a person aged 85 is four times more likely to be the cause of a crash rather than a victim of one.

Source: Autocar UK

Link to Team-BHP news

[chennai-indian]

Eye tests are mandatory in India once you cross 50 to renew your driving license, isn't it? So the UK never had it until now?

[Sandegov]

In USA - eye tests are mandatory for all ages and there's a vision test at DMV everytime during license renewals, and if you need to wear spectacles to pass the vision test then it gets mentioned on the driver license and the cop can write you a ticket if you are not wearing it when you get pulled over.

I have minor power and don't use my spectacles most of the time, I used to avoid TV and Laptop for a full day before my license renewals to pass the vision test

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by chennai-indian

Eye tests are mandatory in India once you cross 50 to renew your driving license, isn't it? So the UK never had it until now?

In India, Form 1-A signed by a medical doctor of any specialty (preferably one working in a government hospital, but anyone with an MBBS degree will do) is all that is required to renew one's licence. Half a dozen questions that the doctor needs to answer regarding the applicant's vision, but obviously no doctor actually tests the applicant's eyes.





I have had my DL renewed twice, and both times I've had an eye test done a short while before (which I usually do every 2-3 years anyway), but the doctor signing the form for most applicants doesn't actually do all that (and most certainly not for any of the professional / commercial drivers).

Now, if the RTOs insist that a qualified optometrist / ophthalmologist has to issue a spectacle prescription along with Form 1-A, that would constitute a better approach (instead of a general physician's opinion / judgment), but many of our 50+ bus- & truck drivers would be out of a job.

[chennai-indian]

Originally Posted by SS-Traveller

In India, Form 1-A signed by a medical doctor of any specialty (preferably one working in a government hospital, but anyone with an MBBS degree will do) is all that is required to renew one's licence. Half a dozen questions that the doctor needs to answer regarding the applicant's vision, but obviously no doctor actually tests the applicant's eyes.

When I renewed my license in Kerala, I was asked to show Eye test result.

[nettooran]

Originally Posted by chennai-indian

When I renewed my license in Kerala, I was asked to show Eye test result.

Yes. In Kerala it is required at any step of licence application or renewal , irrespective of age. This cannot be from any MBBS doctor, but should be signed by specialised eye doctor after testing. Ironically, he can also provide certification of overall health and fitness

[SS-Traveller]

Originally Posted by chennai-indian

When I renewed my license in Kerala, I was asked to show Eye test result.

Originally Posted by nettooran

Yes. In Kerala it is required at any step of licence application or renewal , irrespective of age. This cannot be from any MBBS doctor, but should be signed by specialised eye doctor after testing. Ironically, he can also provide certification of overall health and fitness

That's a great step from Kerala RTOs. I have always wondered why every RTO in the country doesn't employ their own optometrists, who can check vision, colour blindness, etc. easily. I fully agree with the UK mandate, and hope every State and RTO in India implements it as well. The additional cost can be easily included in the renewal fee.

[PearlJam]

Originally Posted by chennai-indian

Eye tests are mandatory in India once you cross 50 to renew your driving license, isn't it?

Yes, only on paper. The whole process is a sham, and an avenue for corruption. Driving schools and "agents" can get you the doctor's certificate, without you even showing up at the testing center

[chennai-indian]

Originally Posted by PearlJam

Yes, only on paper. The whole process is a sham, and an avenue for corruption. Driving schools and "agents" can get you the doctor's certificate, without you even showing up at the testing center

Well, the law is there. I did have to show eye test results when I renewed in Kerala and I did get the test done.

[GoBabyGo]

Hi, in case of Delhi & Noida RTO the process of driving license renewal is online and one only has to submit all the forms online.

I get my driving license renewed in Delhi in June 2020 and I got prefilled & signed form 1 which I had submitted in RTO (that time physical visit was necessary & I was not 50 years old then), but nobody bothered to see my eyesight. It was prefilled form 1 and I didn't have to put a doctor stamp on it.

My daughter got her driving license (new) in Noida (December 2021) and it was again a prefilled online form 1 and I did not have to put a doctor stamp on it, which we submitted and got her driving license. Nobody bothered to check her eyesight.

[Doctortraveller]

As an Ophthalmologist I can attest to the fact that "Medical Certificates" for driving licenses are in fact a sham. I have patients who are cab drivers, private car owners and drivers and even my own driver - all with valid driving licenses, who have vision less than the legal requirement for driving - most of them have high refractive errors and don't wear glasses, quite a few have cataracts and can't see anything beyond a few meters, even less at night, while some others have glaucoma with severely limited fields of vision and are blissfully driving on the streets with reckless abandon and only by "andaaz" - its scary!!

[Jeroen]

In the Netherlands it is mandatory to wear your spectacles/contact lenses whilst driving. The Dutch driver license has several codes printed on it, that show for instance you need to wear spectacles/tests whilst driving.

When you turn 75 there is a mandatory full medical test every year to renew your driver licence.

When you suffer from ailments such as MCI, dementia you need an annual medical check as well to renew your license.

Jeroen