Duke of Edinburgh’s Road Accident

[SirGawain]

AIBU to ask why on earth is the Duke of Edinburgh driving at the age of 97.

Wordthe what form would this monitoring take?

I don't know I don't have a functioning crystal ball, but some sort of computer system could monitor your driving ability surely

@Wordthe I believe that some insurers have that type of thing already, monitors speed, hard braking, sharp turns etc.

That's a good idea to extend it!

So the capability exists but is not being used, I wonder why?

@Wordthe it's used as an incentive to reduce insurance premiums currently, so it could be used to ensure people are able to continue driving?

we should follow the money, we should look at who stands to profit from having lots of elderly people who aren't safe driving on the road
That will tell us who is pulling the strings

we should follow the money, we should look at who stands to profit from having lots of elderly people who aren't safe driving on the road

Before we look at that we need to be sure there are "lots of elderly people who aren't safe driving on the road".

Aside from a few high profile cases and anecdotal stories - what is the evidence exactly?

And why should we focus on old people rather than bad drivers of all ages?

Fortunately there's evidence of who was in fact driving...

You are totally right we should look at who stands to profit from bad drivers of all ages
It's just that this thread is about old people driving, that's why I was focusing on old people

In terms of statistics, it'd be interesting to compare a) the numbers of drivers under 25 and over 80 and b) the number of miles they do. I'd be willing to bet that if you build those factors in then elderly drivers don't look so good.

"In November 2018, there were 5.3 million over-70s with full driving licences in Britain, according to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.
There were 11,245 people involved in road traffic accidents where the driver was in that age group - a rate of two per 1,000 licence holders.
For Britain's 2.8 million drivers aged 17 to 24, the rate was more than four times as high, at nine per 1,000.
The DVLA did not provide figures on whether this simply reflected that the older age group were on the road less than the younger age group. However, a separate study from the National Travel Survey suggests that over-70 drive an average of 1,000 miles a year more than under-20s."

Taken from the BBC News App

He's too old to be driving on public roads. Glad nobody injured. But look! Norfolk council has just announced a range of traffic calming measures for that piece of road. No petitions, no dead and injured, just a quick doff of caps and there we are. How do you get service like that I wonder?

Surely this is a simple case of not judging the traffic properly before pulling out. Something done by many drivers every day.

just a quick doff of caps and there we are

It was under consideration before today's meeting but don't let the facts get in the way of your rabid ageism and anti-royal chipiness.

I love the dashcam footage :o

I reckon he was pissed and the police had to pretend that the breathalyzer test was negative

I reckon he was pissed and the police had to pretend that the breathalyzer test was negative

And if he was anyone else he could sue you for liable for that - since you have zero evidence.

I reckon he was pissed and the police had to pretend that the breathalyzer test was negative

Based on what? @MNHQ can we have a tinfoil hat emoji?

@Badlydrawnperson, you're very defensive is he a mate of yours?

How can you get sued for liable?

Perhaps she means libel?
liable to be sued for libel?

Easy to confuse those two words but of course they have different meanings

A person in the other car had a broken wrist. What gets me is the headlines screaming he was in an accident 'but he's ok'. Since when is it all about him?

Well if the other car had had a collision with some other random person I doubt it would have warranted more than a very small story in the Norfolk Evening News (or whatever the local paper is) Of course they are mainly reporting on him.

What I think is irksome is that at least two tabloids mentioned in the headline that DofE had been breathalysed. From the news report I heard both drivers had a breath test and both were clear. I assume a breath test is routine in these cases. But the newspapers report it in such a way as to give the impression he had been drinking.

I think what is quite galling about it is that there is no need at all for him to be driving on public roads.

Giving up his licence would have no impact & he could still drive on the private estates.

Of course DOE won't get the blame for the accident
Doncha know the royals are perfect and can do no wrong

I don't know if this is a serious point but surely nobody in 2019 with dashcams, the internet and newspapers willing to pay money for information really thinks this will be hushed up do they?

i don't see anything sinister in not getting the details of any injuries, if I was the person in the other car no way on earth would I want my private business in the presss

why should we focus on old people rather than bad drivers of all ages?

We shouldn't - but since retesting everyone would take time to set up, wouldn't it make sense to start with the much smaller group aged over 100 and then roll it downwards?

Another point not yet mentioned is that, bad as they are, reckless young drivers often improve with maturity and experience, whereas those who've become dangerous through loss of faculties can be on a downward slope that's unlikely to get better

Lastly, I'm convinced that not-upsetting-the-grey-vote has more to do with this than practicalities. It's well documented that seniors vote quite heavily, and it's hardly a stretch to think politicians will be wary of anything which will cost them any