To think people over 80 should not drive

[TorridAntelope]

I don't care how bright and sparky they are, the stats show they are dangerous

IME people usually know themselves when to give up driving and often it’s before 80. It seems likely to me that in the vast majority of cases, if people still feel capable of driving, into their 80s, then they are.

I do believe that they should have a driving competency test. I had to report a relative to DVLA because they ignored being told not to drive any more.

I live in a retirement area and see minor incidents caused by elderly drivers regularly.

Not stopping at zebra crossings while people are actually crossing, driving at 20 in safe 50 areas, stopping anywhere to chat to friends, antisocial dangerous parking without blue badges, stopping in the middle of the road in confusion, clearly missing other cars and causing near misses / slow speed crashes...

Every now and again there will be a serious crash with life changing injuries or deaths because an elderly person got mixed up with the pedals or "lost control" or had an episode of a medical condition that should have meant giving up driving prior to the accident.

Disqualification should be based on competence not age IMO.

And the argument of independence is not valid. It could be applied to everyone, including reckless young drivers.

What stats are these OP. If it’s driver hitting a lamppost whilst trying to park not so bad but if it’s stats showing high numbers of innocent deaths due to over 80 drivers then they should sit tests
i thought it was young people who were the highest risk

I agree. Sadly DD 21 year old best friend became another statistic last summer when she was killed by a 19 year old male driver. He was showing off to his mate in the car pulling his hand break which caused him to loose control of his car, he mounted the pavement and hit her - she died at the scene.

I do wish the Government would bring in graduated licences that are being campaigned for it would hopefully prevent more families and communities from going through the loss and trauma of what happened.

I don't think people over 80 should be banned automatically but I think there should be compulsory retests and eye sight checks above around 75 years.

I really disagree with this. I work as a Community Nurse (have done for 27 years) I am regularly horrified at some of the elderly folk I treat who still get behind a wheel. Reduced cognitive impairment, very poor mobility etc. i think they struggle to recognise that it is time for them to stop.

This happened at the bottom of my street
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-39325833

He was 72 and had been told not to drive due to his eyes. He didnt even apply his breaks because he didnt see them crossing.

That's total nonsense. Most people are not good at assessing their abilities objectively. Often, the children need to remove the keys of elderly drivers!

'And the argument of independence is not valid. It could be applied to everyone, including reckless young drivers'

I agree. People's wish for independence does not over right everyone else's right for safety on the road, pavement or car park.

So they are fine at 23:59 on their 79th year 364 days but a minute later at 00:00 down tools and throw away their keys?

Correct

I’m not sure if a blanket ban at 80 would be appropriate- many people should stop driving before 80, and some will be ok beyond then. But, there should absolutely be a regular competency assessment beyond, perhaps, 70?
Cognitive decline due to aging means that driving standards do drop dramatically in the elderly. Unlike teens/ young people, they don’t learn and improve but continue to get worse. Many also refuse to accept they need to stop.

My df stopped driving at 89.
Not because he did anything wrong. A white van man pulled out of a side street in to my df who was on the main road. Df’s car was written off.
Df was debating if to get another car and so I asked him a simple question.
If it had been a dc on a bike coming out of the side street would he have seen dc and braked in time.
Dad decided there and then to give up driving and we were all relieved even though he was an adequate driver.

There should be compulsory retests which also cover updates to the HW code and include eye tests for all drivers every 5 years. Above 75 there should be additional annual eye and reaction tests on a driving simulator.

I don’t think that’s the answer. We live in a count try underpinned by basic freedoms putting responsibility on individuals for their own decision making. A shift to a patrarchical “make it all illegal and prosecute people” model isn’t the society I want to live in

but I also accept it’s hard to argue that there shouldn’t be an age at which you can no longer operate heavy machinery. Aging happens to everyone, it’s not a prejudice.

My city is devoid of these calm, leisurely older drivers. The over 60s here haven’t heard about the 20 mile per hour limits, run Amber lights that are actually red and treat cyclists like target practice.

i agree people of all ages and backgrounds can be and are shit drivers. But yeah i have tbh and say most of the cars i’ve noticed going too slow are older drivers. I would therefore take this to mean their reaction time and confidence isn’t where it should be.

I’m not sure the current system is set up to actually retest everyone as young people are struggling to get driving tests, but i think a bare minimum should be that older drivers retake the theory test to remind them of the highway code and to also assess their hazard perception.

DMIL recently stopped at 86, but was perfectly fine until then. She just didn’t think it was worth her while to renew her licence etc as she wasn’t driving often enough. DF 84 on the other hand should have stopped years ago 😬 and definitely would not pass a driving test now.

Using your stupid logic we need to ban all males between 17 and 25.

Christ on a bike. Ageism at its best.

I'm glad someone mentioned this, because I think the whole thing will become a moot point over the next 10-20 years.

I'm 37, and I expect I'll cease to be a driver long before my age is a question, and I don't know if my toddler will ever learn to drive.

I think they'll leave as is for the remainder of the time cars are driven by humans, because the admin burden of changing the rules won't be worth it for the short term gain.

The reactions of an 80 year old are very much impeded and they should not be driving. That’s my opinion. But there’s also something else I don’t think many people grasp. If an over 80 year old does crash, for whatever reason, not just if it’s their fault. If they crash then their injuries can be horrific due to their age. It’s dangerous for them. Especially women.

Statistically, young drivers aged 17 - 25 are the ones causing the most accidents. Elderly drivers are more likely to be seriously injured if they are involved in a car accident purely because they’re elderly and physically more frail.
If you’re going to make sweeping statements, at least back them up with facts, not anecdotal stories.
www.cleangreencars.co.uk/blog/which-age-group-causes-the-most-car-accidents-in-the-uk/#:~:text=According%20to%20road%20safety%20studies,or%20driving%20under%20the%20influence.

Ban this, ban that. Mumsnet at its finest. Indeed, should we take Adrian Mole's advice, that anyone over the age of fifty should commit mass suicide, so that the disabled spaces outside Marks and Spencer's can be reclaimed by the young and able-bodied? Can we ban Donald Trump, please? He's certainly a dangerous driver in more ways than one. Ditto Rupert Murdoch (is he still alive?).

I know 80-year-olds who play netball. And not walking netball: proper running netball. Not all oldies have slow reactions.

He shouldn’t have been driving due to his poor eyesight, not due to his age! A 25 year old with the same level of eyesight should also not be driving.

Nope, it’s just ageism and statistics don’t bear this out. It’s so easy to be ageist against the elderly.