AIBU to think drivers (more so elderly) need to be retested?

[ayonoosh]

I know I'll probably get lumped with being ageist here. I want to preface I think all drivers should be tested after perhaps 10 years but once at retirement age or 70s, every few years?

I live in a town that's predominantly one way. In the past 7 days I have seen 2 elderly drivers run red lights. One elderly driver go the wrong way up a very well signed street, with other drivers beeping and flashing and they just kept going, one elderly driver driving on the opposite side of the road going onto a short duel carriage way (!!) and an elderly driver drive down the middle of the bollards in Tesco.

this isn't an unusual amount of it too, there are so many posts on the local community pages with cars and registrations and people posting about it. It is so incredibly dangerous. We have a uni in town too and have our fair share of young drivers, I do see them hurtling around town at stupid speeds but they aren't as common as the elderly drivers reported.

I know young drivers cause more crashes, but elderly people tend to have low mileage bias, I think if they drove mile for mile the stats may differ. Elderly drivers responsible for deaths have increased by 42% in the last decade.

AIBU to think mandatory testing for all, especially for elderly should be implemented? I know the money, time, stubbornness, etc etc make it unrealistic, and there are terrible drivers of all ages of course. But if age related reaction times are something that doesn't apply to you, then surely it's a tick box activity and back to driving?

im seeing increasingly more elderly pootling at 50 in the middle lane on the M25, as well as stupid taxi drivers doing it too. they ought to be retested too.

what's everyone's thoughts?

respectfully, you should take your own advice

What do you mean by that?

See, it's this 'never mind' attitude that is so incredibly dangerous.

but never mind PP, we'll be old one day ay!
im so sorry you had to go through that, how frightening for you all. He should've had his license taken away immediately.

I live in an area with a larger than average elderly demographic, and whilst it isn’t nice to say, I agree.

I encountered dangerous driving mainly from elderly so frequently.

Of course, any age group can have bad drivers, but I have noticed a pattern here.
Seems the council/police have too, as they are now offering elderly refresher driving courses.

And the generalising you're doing is highly unpleasant.

In principle it's a good idea because the problems with age creep up on one and it can be difficult for an individual to determine the point at which they are an unsafe driver. However as you say yourself, elderly drivers tend to stick to local journeys, go at low speeds and do fewer miles, so the problem is essentially self limiting. Statistically speaking elderly people driving aren't even nearly as much of a problem as drivers under 25 and I'm not sure the massive logistical challenges and expense involved in regularly testing them is justified, in terms of the actual damage they cause, as a cohort.

At any point in time there are going to be a certain amount of people on the roads who really shouldn't be - who are overly tired, or affected by illness, age or other conditions, or medication, or drink and drugs. Better to have a scheme for other road users to easily report drivers who are perceptibly unsafe. I think some police authorities are trialling this, with online forms, and now that more people have dashcams I expect it will be more widely rolled out.

I agree there should be something. My mother continued driving when she shouldn't have been up till her death at 87. Her eyesight was ok but she just seemed to have no awareness. In the end none of us would go in the car with her but she thought she was a great driver and scoffed at her friend who wouldn't drive in busy places etc. She had numerous bumps and scrapes and even once drove off with a traffic cone wedged under her car. She never told us any of this but as we live in a small town, it always got back to us.

It is very hard atm to stop a bad elderly driver. We tried talking to her doctor but there was nothing he could do.

You said I was minimising younger drivers.

I am not, I am only going by what I have witnessed in my town. I have also said younger drivers need to be tested and they should up the age to when they can be tested.

elderly drivers kill too, and it seems like you're minimising this. Yes the stats are less, but they still do kill. My dear friend was testament to this.

Yeah you've made a good point there. It's good they're trialling it too.
wheb the elderly woman T-boned me I reported it to the police and they literally said unless someone's been injured they weren't interested.
i said I wanted to report reckless driving. The officer said they were getting increasing reports for elderly drivers and it's absolutely a problem. But they don't have the resources to do anything about it. This was a while ago though, so I'm glad some things are being trialled and tested.

Yes it's funny how people have no issue being ageist when it comes to younger people.

I agree though elderly people come across so rude and entitled. Even my own grandmother who I love to pieces can be so mortifying to go out with the way she talks to people. And my granda will continue to drive until he dies because he is so stubborn he would rather cause an accident than just admit hes getting older.

A young girl was killed very near to me a few years ago cause an elderly person hit the accelerator instead of the break...if you weren't capable of using heavy machinery in a job or any other place in life, why are you allowed to be in charge of a vehicle? So just because you passed a test 60 odd years ago and might lose some independence if you give it up you have the right to go round causing accidents and killing people.

Yeah there's loopholes for elderly drivers, than young drivers don't have.

it needs to be equal measure for all at least.

I am sorry your friend was killed. However one death like that doesn't constitute data.

What are these "loopholes" then?

Wholeheartedly agree, but we'll be flamed for it!

Not related to driving, but I have found elderly women 70+ the worst for manners and entitlement, when in local shops and cafes and eateries.
I wonder if I'll get rumbled for being ageist for saying that though, because you won't be for being ageist against youngsters.

I will call out ageism when it applies to any age group.

And this thread/your posts are horribly ageist.

less deaths doesn't mean nothing needs to be done about it though does it.

I agree. There should be some test that checks for abilityto notice and read signs, check mirrors and spatial awareness.

elderly drivers kill too, and it seems like you're minimising this. Yes the stats are less, but they still do kill. My dear friend was testament to this.

I am sorry about your friend, but realistically anyone behind the wheel of a car can potentially kill someone.
We all hope that in the heat of the moment we can all stop in time to avoid the kid that has run into the road, the cyclist that has just fallen off their bike, the other car that has gone through a red etc. That is the risk we all take.

and have you called out the posters who have been evidently ageist to the youngsters?

I'll wait..

That they self certify that they are safe to drive.

Agreed.

I'm not generalising. I'm speaking from actual experience where my 7 year old daughter was almost killed by an elderly driver who didn't care.

The Police told me it was a significant problem they had to deal with on a regular basis.

These are not generalisations so please don't be so dismissive.

The only issue I have in my town with elderly drivers is that some drive way below the speed limit. It's a bit annoying especially if you can't overtake.
In my town a lot of younger drivers like to hire high powered cars. These drivers are a problem. They like the speed, undercutting, tailgating etc. Bloody nightmare! Late at night they use the dual carriage way around the town as a race track. The police have a cracking down every now and again but it keeps reoccurring.

And for everyone saying 'Oh yes, granny was a terrible driver, but we couldn't do anything' - you can. Report to the DVLA and remove their keys. Take responsibility yourself, and hope that someone else's grandchild does the same.

So? No one questions whether younger people are safe to drive or not?

Well, @ayonoosh, as I’ve only just come to this thread, no I haven’t! Yet ...

(But also, to point out, you never know what goes on behind the scenes of threads/posts - I’ll often report as well as/instead of post)