To be genuinely concerned about some of the older drivers on the road

[Melas]

I work at a hospital. Went to lunch today and was approached by a very confused elderly man who couldn’t find the clinic he needed for his wife. He was stooped over, had a tremor and was really frail. I pointed the clinic out three times and he was still confused so I walked him to the doors (he was shuffling) and then went to find a porter to help with his wife.

I came back from lunch and he was driving out of the car park with his wife. Car creeping along at 2mphs, he bumped over the pavement and on to the main road still at around 5-10mph as he went around the corner.

He could barely walk, how is he still driving safely? I do not condone drink driving at ALL but I could have a large glass of wine and be over the limit and I swear I would still be more responsive than he was.

We had an awful incident here a few years ago when an elderly man killed a 16 year old girl on her way to college. He’d had an accident a few days beforehand driving down the wrong side of the road but the police were unable to confiscate his licence (I think this may have changed by now).

Shouldn’t we be retesting at certain age by now? Even if it was 80 that would be something. I can’t stop thinking about this man driving around the roads still.

There should be a re-test annually. My mil was reported to the DVLA when she refused to stop driving, despite losing consciousness, but never whilst driving, so she thought was ok!

The most frequent cause of RTCs involving older drivers, according to an officer I know, is mistaking the gas for the brake. My 70 year old friend was hit from behind by an older driver. He then followed her into a back street to exchange details. She got out, he rammed her car into a bollard. He’s still driving.

www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www.standard.co.uk/news/london/father-pushes-child-to-safety-but-runaway-car-kills-his-wife-in-west-hampstead-crash-8312748.html%3famp

This is an awful case local to me.

Many elderly people qualify for blue badges and the transport support around that and, if they are in London, massively subsidised taxis via Taxicard. I imagine that many can afford taxis which are so much more accessible these days. Maybe the taxi companies could have an initiative to offer reduced fares to pensioners, perhaps some do already, I dont know. It could be a good business model.
A good friend of mine was in her front garden with her two kids and an elderly (80ish) driver mounted the pavement, crashed through the wall and mowed all three of them down. Her DS was airlifted to hospital and she and her DD were taken to different hospitals, all at three different hospitals. The two kids were in wheelchairs for months afterwards and they all took a long time to recover. The Police told her it was a common problem and there was very little they could do. The driver didn't get prosecuted because the cause couldn't be proved, my friend thinks he fell asleep or passed out.

I was in a very crowded car park the other day and noticed that an elderly man was unable to turn his large 4x4 car. I was lucky not to get hit. It obviously hurt him to turn the steering wheel! He had a younger female partner in the passenger seat and she looked visibly shocked! I hope she had words with him.

The car’s driver, an 83-year-old man, was taken to hospital with minor injuries. Police are examining his car and say there have not been any arrests
Wouldn't seem quite so tragic if these irresponsible elderly drivers were the sole victims of their own selfishness but so often it seems that the frail elderly person gets off with hardly a scratch after killing / maiming 2 or 3 young able-bodied people
Maybe that's how they manage to get to such an advanced age ....self Preservation at all costs😕

What an unpleasant post fortuna

I think you'll find that most car drivers come off better than the pedestrians they hit, regardless of age. Something to do with the tons of metal encasing them I expect.

DP's dad has just re-taken his test and had it approved! DP and his sister are furious because he has dementia. DP went to the re-test with his dad and told the examiner about his dementia but he was still approved to drive.

They had taken his keys off him to stop him driving thinking that the re-test would validate their decision (DP's dad was not happy at having the keys taken off him).

They have still refused to give him the car keys though and DP's dad's dementia care worker is going to write to the DVLA.

Absolutely farcical.

I had to retake my driving test ten years after I had passed my first test (different countries and I didn't realise that I could change my licence for the one needed in the UK and it had to be done before the licence ran out idiot).

Anyway, I did have lessons, just ten, because I may have developed bad driving habits. I didn't as it happens and I did pass first time, again, thankfully!

I live rurally. Zero public transport, expensive houses mostly owned by older people, because they are the only ones who can afford to live here.

It's just disaster. We need more public transport so that those who start to feel unsafe to drive can still have independence. As it stands, giving up driving out here means either giving up leaving the house or having to move, both of which seem awful, so those who really shouldn't be driving, keep doing it.

I agree so so so much.

My lovely Grandma is 86 and getting fairly seriously confused at times. She absolutely should not be driving but we can't do anything about it. We've reported to the DVLA, the council, social services and her GP and no one has yet listened to us and addressed it with her.

When she self declared 2 years ago she was really well and able to drive... last week she was trying to change gears with the indicator controls

When you bring it up with her directly she accuses you of ageism and of 'bullying her' and 'trying to take her independence' and it's causing a real rift in the family. We need an external source to come and tell her she's not safe. It's horrific.

expensive houses mostly owned by older people, because they are the only ones who can afford to live here
In my experience there is a huge reluctance to give up the status and prestige which comes with having a property in the country and expensive car on the driveway.
It would be much easier for older people to be independent and self-sufficient if they moved to a small flat in an area where there is public transport and where you can walk to the shops etc but to them that would be too much of a step down in life

I agree about public transport. This is why I agree with bus passes for pensioners - it give people an easy way out of driving if they want to take it. It has saved a good few families heart-ache trying to get relatives to stop driving. But you do need good public transport outside of the big cities. There has been a huge increase in population where I live, but still the busses are hit and miss.

I have a friend who drives me about who has just had a cataract op done privately. It is a revelation to her (and a relief to me). Since the NHS is now saving money by cutting down on cataract operations and people have to wait a lot longer, there will be more and more people around driving who cannot see quite as well as they think they can. And you don't have to be old to get cataracts either.

In an ideal world, there would be retests over a certain age but there aren't the resources for people to take their first test without a significant wait so it's just not realistic.

Age isn't arbitrary anyway. Some people are excellent drivers into their 90s, some are appalling in their 40s.

I used to mock people who wouldn't drive in the dark, now I won't because I just don't feel safe.

Cataract operations are cheap though. Why would they be curtailed in the NHS?

You get pushed up the waiting list for cataract surgery if you drive.

Thanks Bluelady

My mum is in her 90s and has just had her licence renewed. She doesn't drive at night, in the frost, snow, winter. She only drives routes she is sure of and has a car she is comfortable with, automatic. She does have family who can drive her to where she needs to go and is happy to use the bus when needed.

Such a worry of mine. It's such a concern when they are oblivious to what is happening around them, and they are in control of a vehicle that has the potential to kill someone. Re-testing at a certain age is definitely something that should be a considered.
Also drivers with health problems that can/do affect their driving abilities should have those medical records passed to the DVLA for consideration. I know someone that drives, although the GP has said he shouldn't because of his health.

I was driving on a 40mph road one day, and approached a small roundabout and gave way to the only car on my right. All fine, and I continued on my way taking the same exit as the car id gave way to. Baring in mind this road is a 40mph, this car was doing 15mph. I hung back, thinking they'll pick up speed but they didn't. Instead they stopped dead in the middle of the road to look at a road sign! I gave the driver a moment to realise what they were doing, but nothing happened so I beeped and saw a very frail old man looking in his mirror at me, very startled. It was like he had no idea there were 10+ cars sitting behind him. He then pulled into a side road. I wish I could have stopped to see if he was ok, but I was running late for my DS hospital appointment.

Yes retest at 60, 65,70,75,80 every 5 years infact!

You must be young to think 60s is too old to drive without being tested!

The OP was talking about very elderly people who clearly have mobility and mental issues.

In France, you can drive a certain type of car "sans permit" if you have issues, for example you get done for some driving misdemeanour which would otherwise result in a ban. These cars have very small engines capable of low speeds. I don't think you can drive them on a motorway either. This might be a solution for older people who need to drive on local roads but keeps them away from roads where more driving skill is needed.

ohfortuna, I'm not sure it is about giving up status. My Mum and a lot of her friends live on their own in what are considered "expensive" houses. However, they weren't particularly expensive when they were originally purchased 40+ years ago, they've just become expensive because of property price increases. Lots of these elderly ladies live in what were family homes, surrounded by the memories of their husbands and children and the happy times they once had there. It isn't status they want to give up, it is the home they've known all their adult lives and the connection it gives them to the past.

to be honest I worry more about drivers from Poland who seem to have passed a very basic test and have scant regard for traffic law.

It’s definitely going to become more of a concern as the population ages. My parents (70 DM and 75 DSD) live really rurally and although both are fit as fiddles, rely totally on their cars to get about as the closest shop is 2 miles away. I live on the south coast and was directly behind as a man of 90 rolled his car after clipping the side of a parked car whilst doing 20mph along the seafront in Shoreham Beach. He and his 90 year old wife were hanging from their seatbelts inside their Disco with the engine running and smoke pouring from the car... luckily there was a A&E doctor walking on the beach and she managed to get them to stay in the car until the Fire Brigade and ambulance arrived. Utterly out of the blue - he just misjudged the distance between his car and the parked one. My 7yo was totally traumatised. There could easily have been someone on the pavement when the car rolled onto it.

@enpointeredshoes You must still be fairly young if you're insisting that we are re-tested at 60 and 65! You do know that the retirement age in this country is 67! Get a grip 🙄 I think the elderly people the OP is referring to are WAY past their 60s!!

My Mum and a lot of her friends live on their own in what are considered "expensive" houses. However, they weren't particularly expensive when they were originally purchased 40+ years ago, they've just become expensive because of property price increases
The fact that these properties were not expensive at the time of perchase is somewhat besides the point.
Your mother and her friends are still very aware but they are a privileged group of people... they own outright properties that few people can afford to even rent, much less buy.
Therefore they have a higher status than those who can't afford to live in such places

DullAndOld

You should read this link. It's interesting.

www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/travel_news/article-3821470/The-easiest-hardest-places-world-pass-driving-test.html

I'm honestly not sure my Mum is aware of that ohfortuna. She's in her mid 80s and I don't think she is really aware of the struggles to buy that younger people have. She doesn't have a clue what her house is worth or in all honesty what anyone else's house is worth either! It is just the way it was for her generation. You got married, had kids, stayed at home and your husband worked and bought a house. There are little old ladies like her across the country and I don't think they think they are privileged at all. She scrimps and saves still and thinks she leads a frugal life!

interesting Elendon, some it really doesn't surprise me..