Majority think elderly should resit driving test

NEARLY half of British people think elderly people should be banned from driving. And, according to a survey, nearly 70 per cent believe older drivers should have to resit their driving test.

The most common reason why those who took the survey by CarTakeBack.com and YouGov thought those aged more than 60 should be banned or made to resit their test was “older drivers don’t have fast enough reaction times”.

Most respondents said the compulsory tests should take place between 71 and 75.

Those in favour of the more drastic upper age limit measure and a complete ban, chose a much older age for this – 86-90 (10 per cent) and older than 90 (14 per cent).

Younger adults between the ages of 18-24 thought the compulsory retest should come at a younger age.

More than one in three (37 per cent) thought it should occur between 60 and 70, compared to just 13 per cent of those aged 55+ who said the same.

A spokesperson from road safety charity Brake said: “For older drivers, licence renewal at 70 prompts them to check and self-certify they are fit to drive but this process can be improved.

“The Government needs to look at how fitness to drive regulation can be more rigorously enforced, such as compulsory eyesight testing throughout a driver’s career, rather than simply expecting drivers to selfcertify that they are fit to drive.”

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy and Research, said: “In reality, new drivers are the most at risk group and older drivers are among the safest.

“Statistics do, however, show that drivers over 85 do start to have more crashes as their faculties fade and their experience is no longer enough to compensate.

“Older drivers really value their independence and it may be that a tougher testing regime is an acceptable trade off to allow them to keep driving.”

The research comes as one third of drivers said they wouldn’t be able to re-pass their theory test, with one in six saying they wouldn’t be capable of re-passing their practical driving test.

Many drivers have spoken about their confidence declining the longer they drive, prompting the calls for elderly drivers to be retested.

A spokesperson for comparethemarket.com, said: “Age and experience were found to play a significant role in driving confidence.

“When asked how many years of driving experience respondents had when they felt the most confident, the research revealed confidence peaks between one and six years of driving experience and then significantly reduces around seven years.”

Once a road user reaches 70, they will need to renew their driving licence if they wish to continue driving. Following this, they will need to renew it every three years afterwards.

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: “Allowing older drivers to remain mobile is critical to their mental and physical wellbeing, but so is safety.

“A system which helps people address their shortcomings rather than simply penalises them could help maintain this balance.”