to think that driving ability should be re-tested at some point in old age?

[var123]

just that really.

www.itv.com/news/story/2016-02-12/eight-children-hit-by-car-outside-school-in-liverpool/

Even if it turns out that the woman involved in this case was generally fit to drive, there have been other accidents when you hear it was an 80+ person at the wheel driving up the wrong side of the motorway or something.

I know other drivers can be dangerous too, but in their case, its more usually that they are choosing not to drive safely at that moment than they can't, so its harder to test for.

Points like OzzieFem's are quite invalid. So what if there is no public transport or it is difficult to use it? It's a nuisance/sad/an outrage even - but it's irrelevant . The only point is whether a driver is competent to be in charge of a vehicle. A person's right to independence certainly should not trump another's right not to be run over.

Also I don't think those over a certain age should be allowed to drive automatic cars. These are responsible for most of the car park-type incidents, such as suddenly accelerating or reversing.

I agree entirely that there should be additional driver training every x years (personally I think 5), consisting of a morning of both practical driving and coaching. Lots of private companies offer this via what they call "Defensive driving" courses - I've done two and got a lot out of them both.

There's a mechanism already in place via the driving license expiry dates. Anyone deemed unsafe to continue driving would have to take additional lessons to get themselves back to a safe standard.

It's not just about "old age" but also about all ages, everyone becomes a bit complacent at times, stops looking for road signs, bad habits creep in...

Yes to the comment about automatics.
I've seen a car 'parked' inside a shop because the wrong pedal was pressed. And yes it was an elderly driver. A manual car would probably just have stalled.

I notice no ones posted about this - www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-35577005

Haven't read the whole thread so apologise if all ready mentioned but my df has to have yearly field of vision tests to ensure he is safe to drive. He's nearly 80 and is a good driver.

I go think we should all get retested every 5 years though.

Anyone who drives at only 50mph on a clear motorway should be fined/banned.

I disagree. Yesterday I was driving at about 68 miles an hour on the M27. I was the slowest driver on the road. That's at 2 miles an hour below the speed limit. 50 is a bit too slow but there are lorries that are restricted to that speed or close to it eg 55. It is not right to intimidate or worry people who drive at say 55-60 into driving faster just because every other nutter is doing 80-90. That is why there are 3 lanes. Just overtake if they're too slow for you. It's not like being on a normal road with a 60mph limit and someone does 30mph and you can't get past them.

As for the OP, well there are some very poor elderly drivers and given this was in Liverpool which has very good public transport there's no need for someone in their 80s who can't drive properly to still be driving (I can understand why people may continue when they live in a rural area with one bus a week although I don't condone it if they are not fit to drive). But there are some very poor younger drivers too. Take a look at the quality of driving from parents dropping their kids off at your nearest school for example. Or the fact that nobody feels able to stick to the 70mph limit on a motorway.

I don't think those over a certain age should be allowed to drive automatic cars.

This is an interesting comment. I drive an automatic although it has a manual mode so effectively I drive it as a manual but don't have a clutch. The thing about automatics is that they are easier to drive. I think there would be more accidents (and more serious ones) if people were spending time worrying about the gears, not fewer.

I think everyone should be retested every 5 years but it will never happen.
I also think there should be compulsory testing for people who have not learned to drive in this country or passed a test here.

My poor dd was injured in a crash last week by someone who seemed to think that it is ok to drive straight onto a roundabout without checking to his right.

I know of two people local to me who were killed by uninsured, unlicensed drivers both of whom were in this country illegally.

I see people texting, phoning, watching films while driving - there simply aren't enough traffic police to do anything about these people.

I do agree that elderly drivers should have regular checks - but again, it is question of who does it, who pays for it, how would it be enforced?

YANBU. Every day I cringe when my 81 year old employers wife gets in her car on the drive and revs the hell out of the engine when starting the car.

Cars are like weapons and there should be far far more control and far greater punishments when laws are broken. I find it astonishing that people in their advanced years can continue driving on the say so of an eye test especially when you see what you need to do to pass a driving test these days.

Meant to say, the person responsible for Dd's injuries was a young man.

My friend's mother became, to the family, noticeably "dangerous" behind the wheel at 88. She was having lots of scares and dents and the family realised that she was really not fit to drive.

They unplugged the battery.
When she called to say that the car wouldn't start, they took her shopping and arranged lifts to all her usual activities.

They "towed" the car to a mechanic whilst she was out with another family member and gently said that the car would cost so much to fix that it wasn't worth it but how lovely because she's now seeing so much more of X,Y,Z by going places with them.

There was the independence "wail" and it was met with. Here's £50. Kee it in your purse and you can always get a taxi if you're feeling spontaneous. I'll replace it when it's gone

I think it's an incredibly kind way of managing the situation.

Space, I wish the family of the woman who ran me over had been so thoughtful.
When her son approached my Dad and said that they had told her not to drive but she'd ignored them, his reaction was "why didn't you take the bloody keys off her then?"

If they'd done that I wouldn't have nearly been killed.

I wouldn't have life changing injuries.

I wouldn't have had to leave school. As I missed so much I was placed in a learning unit with all the kids who had been chucked out of every other school in the city.
I didn't sit my GCSE's until I was 18.

I missed out on a huge chunk of my teenage years. I became very depressed and it took years to lift.

I suffered greatly because of this stupid woman and her families refusal to take any action. And I was lucky. I wasn't killed.

I would support much more stringent enforcement of driving standards, and agree peole coming from other countries should take a UK test if residing here, but retesting everyone would be a logistical nightmare and a very odd way to try and catch a small number who shouldn't be driving. We need a lot more traffic police, but we voted to spend mkney on other stuff.

No Govt will ever introduce mandatory testing for pensioners. They vote!

More traffic police? They won't stop older people driving though..... Or prevent loads of accidents

We found these services very helpful

www.roadar.org/drivers/driving-assessments.htm

www.iam.org.uk/drivers/motorists-courses/driving-assessment/mature-drivers-assesment

To provide an objective assessment of an elderly parent's capability to drive. HTH

My dad should definitely have been tested every 5 years. He was always a bit on the speedy side, but over the years his driving got progressively more erratic and downright dangerous, to the point where he was stopped by other drivers who demanded to know if he was pissed.

Turns out it was all down to Huntington's disease, which he was only diagnosed with last year after being symptomatic for at least 15 years. In that time, he could've killed or seriously injured someone. His licence was revoked following his diagnosis. I believe it should've happened much sooner!