The way to do this is to make a 'Driving Competency' certificate an Insurance break, just like the pass plus is.
Then, a few years later, after people are used to hearing about it and some people are doing it for the perk, make it mandatory for anyone more than xxxx years from passing their test.
It's not about age, it's about safety and awareness.
A stripped down version of the theory test - for new rules and updated ones - plus a thirty minute guided drive to include a roundabout, a dual carriageway and/or motorway and a number of speed changes, including a school zone, plus say, a turn in the road or parking maneuver and an emergency stop, would do a lot to weed out those drivers who aren't safe.
And, yes, eye tests should be mandatory for all drivers and production of a recent test cert should be a part of the photo-card renewal requirements. I say this as someone who wears glasses, as does my DH.
Anecdotally, I can think of six people who are hazards behind the wheel. Two are under twenty-five, one is elderly, and the other three are mid forties.
Of the mid-forties group, one is a man who has no patience. The other two are women who just don't drive enough to maintain competence. They 'won't drive' on the motorway/on 'fast' roads, in the rain, at night.... you get the idea. That all comes back to poor skill, lack of confidence and car control, and yes, it makes them both a stereotype and bloody dangerous.
The fact is that the roads have changed a lot in the last twenty years and anyone who isn't used to or able to cope with the current conditions is likely to be dangerous. We're making the test ever more stringent, and upping the costs of insurance for younger, newer drivers all the time. A lot of policies now require good driver boxes, and that's no bad thing.
But surely, it's also time to start looking at all the bad habits/iffy eye sight/ lack of practice etc right across the board?