Driving over 70

[Veryveryconcerned]

It took me time to decide but after getting other people’s opinions I reported an over 70 driver to the DVLA due to poor eyesight. Prior to the person’s 70th birthday they had said they were getting rid of their 3.5 tonne van as they said they would not pass the test to be able to continue driving it. The person is virtually blind in one eye and the eyesight is not good in the other. They do not get their eyes tested because they do not want to have to stop driving. My concern is the other people on the roads.
Does anyone know how long it takes and what exactly the DVLA do when they receive a report. I have reported it anonymously but it was about 8 weeks ago which is very concerning.
Am I worrying unnecessarily?

My non-question has been answered comprehensively by the person to who it was aimed.

I’m not sure how carefully you have read my post at 21:27 but you don’t seem to have taken on all the points.

There are many people who need directions from another person or a sat nav to get them from A to B.

Yes, DVLA are aware.

Cognitive ability levels are different in different areas. He undergoes extensive testing and monitoring regularly and I am with him whenever he drives in case there is a sudden change.

There are a lot of degenerative conditions which need monitoring as opposed to immediate withdrawal of driving licence.

This is all detracting from the issue of sight tests. However, thinking about it, sight is case in point. Should every driver without 20/20 vision have to hand their licence in or should their sight be monitored as it deteriorates ?

Yes, every driver without 20/20 should hand in their license, if they haven’t corrected it.

Would this include people who wear glasses to give them 20 / 20 vision as well , although if you work for the civil service they carry out checks and reflex checks as well so really it's nothing new , now every one who walks , cycles , drives , catches a bus etc should have there eyes tested , from 18 to 108 years of age l so agree

I mean obviously it is not great people with poor eyesight driving.

But I do wonder sometimes when people claim eyesight is bad how bad it really is.

To me it feels as if someones eyesight really is that bad they should having accidents every 5 minutes and have insurance costs through the roof.

@mintydoggyv the glasses ARE the correction, for most people.

Disclaimer - haven't read the whole thread but the legal standard of vision for driving isn't 6/6 ( 20/20 is American, and not how vision is measured over here.)
The legal standard is 6/12 ( so worse than 6/6) a numberplate at 20 m and a good field of vision (the details of this bit are in the regulations), and if you can't meet that standard you are not legal to drive, and should be telling DVLA.
The problem is the people who don't know they can't see and the ones who don't care obviously.

Glases don’t work for people with glaucoma, cataracts or macular degeneration, and those are all more common in older age groups.

Ah that's what optician's are for and they find people with bad eyes that's the idea ,many cyclist are half blind but these are not checked,they will be which is good it will be nice not to get run over by a bike in pedestrian zones

Of course they do.
Thousands of people
with these conditions are legal to drive and they need their glasses to ensure they meet the driving standards.

I think you’re right! There’s no way they can correct these conditions.,

Your 'non-question' was aimed at me, you seem to have lost track of who you're talking to about what.

I don't know how you, a non-driver, would be any help at all if his condition suddenly changes on the road, and it might all be too late by then anyway, if an accident is the first indication.

It's the combination of his age and his Alzheimer's that's the problem here. Slow reaction time - which you've acknowledged by telling us he drives slowly - combined with the unpredictability of cognitive decline.

Well done OP. I was almost in an accident a couple of years ago when doing 55mph on a straight road with great visibility. Saw someone pull up to the junction and automatically slowed a bit but they didn't stop at the junction and just pulled out a really short distance in front of me. I had to swerve onto the wrong side of the road to avoid him and ended up a good distance ahead before I could stop. He just carried on without a glance. I genuinely think he had no idea I was there. Had there been someone coming the other way it could very easily been a fatal accident. I actually think he was so oblivious I'd suspect dementia rather than eyesight. But either way I agree our competence to drive should be retested very regularly over 70. Even TBH before that, judging by some of the other terrible driving I see!

My apologies – serves me right for trying to respond to two people almost simultaneously on the same subject.

You called me a non-driver which is different from me saying I don’t drive.

You said I’ve told you he drives slowly; I said he drives about 10% slower now because he is aware his reactions are slower than when he was younger. I think more older drivers would be well advised to do the same instead of feeling they are still as sharp as they were 20, 30, 40, 50 years ago.

As for the rest I think I’ll continue to work with and take advice from medical professionals rather than someone on an internet forum but thanks for your interest.

Not a driving wind up, l swear , all the best to you.and hubby , my wife passed in March from that she had it for 18 years my very best to you and familly. I see you don't drive , could you learn it helps so much . My heart ,prayers,go out to you

They can only drive if the conditions aren't yet severe and they pass the vision test. Many people have one of these conditions as well as needing glasses for shortsightedness. but glasses can't correct limited field of vision or clouding.

The whole problem of this thread is people who wouldn't pass the vision test if they took it, but are nevertheless still driving.

Thank you 😊

I've said I don't drive, not I can't.

But according to some lovely I'm too old anyway ! 🤣

Yes, but your previous post said

‘Glases don’t work for people with glaucoma, cataracts or macular degeneration, and those are all more common in older age groups.’

which is just not true

Refractive error and ocular pathology aren’t mutually exclusive. People with these conditions may well find that glasses correct their vision to driving standard- which means that glasses do work for them. Not all of them granted but for a significant majority.

In the older (>80’s) population the problem is more the person as a whole. Often times people think that good eyesight is the be all that ends all and fail to
consider their reaction times/cognition etc

Your DH's situation is very unusual then, in that he seems to have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's at a very early stage - when he is still minimally affected by the illness. That said, he could decline unexpectedly quickly in some aspects, and I wouldn't be prepared to travel in a car with someone who was at higher risk of that kind of decline. As an example, before my DF was diagnosed with Alzheimer's he suddenly forgot that he'd been living in a bungalow for over 20 years, and spend over an hour while my DM was out looking for the stairs so he could go to bed. He was very upset about this but otherwise no harm done. That kind of sudden and sharp decline could be dangerous if it happened while driving.

And there's obviously a difference between someone who can drive but doesn't and someone who cannot drive. The latter is more likely to be oblivious to a driver's lack of capacity, the former less so.

You seem to be being deliberately disingenuous when it comes to the potential risks of people with Alzheimer's or dementia continuing to drive.

Thanks, you are obviously more knowledgeable than me. I think we are saying the same thing but as always on Mumset attempting a brief answer leaves out the nuances. Obviously eyesight isn't the only factor. I have been through this with four elderly family members who had to temporarily/permanently stop driving, for different reasons.
I suppose I should have said "severe glaucoma etc" as that's what I meant, but those are age-prevalent conditions.

You are right of course that there are multiple factors any or all of which could make a person unfit to drive.

Over 70 here. My distance eyesight, most important for driving, is actually improving with age. I do get a thorough eye test every year and wear the correct glasses.

Your personal experience doesn’t negate the fact that eyesight typically deteriorates with age. It’s just a fact.

I am in my 70s and my eyesight
has not changed either , the age group that need checking more are the 17 to 25 year old who kill people , l think the Driving licence age should be 30 , then learners and those who have passed until 40 only drive a 750 engine or electric equivalent let's save lives , plus a special bus drivers licence for suv drivers

Lets hope his eyesight doesn't deteriorate then eh? Because other peoples safety is a little more important than you 'being stuck' eh?

The 17-25 year olds may need something different to the over 70's, but it isn't more eyesight checking.

I'd be interested to know, seeing as you say the licence age should be 30 and restrictions until 40 - when did you start driving?

Maybe I should ignore responses to my posts about OH’s Alzheimer’s because they are detracting from the over 70s sight test issue but there’s something in me which drives me on to reply.

Every Alzheimer's sufferer is unique; there are often similarities but every pathway and timeline is different. The multiple tests and scans he has tell the doctors a lot about his condition and its anticipated progress. In my opinion, they are the experts and if I didn’t take their advice it would probably be a waste of OH’s and my time attending all the appointments and OH going through all the tests and scans. He doesn’t do the MRI and PET scans for the fun of it.

I honestly don’t think I’m being disingenuous about the risks; shall I raise you concerns at OH’s next appointment with the people who are monitoring him and advising me ?

Thank you for acknowledging the difference between can’t drive and doesn’t drive.