Drivers over 70 years old

[gingerdave]

So Duke of Edinburgh involved in RTA while exiting a minor road.Do we think older drivers say 70+ should be retested on an annual basis.My opinion is yes as you do see OAP drivers making some strange manoeuvres on occasion (but also some younger)Thoughts

 

[YOG]

According to the Daily Mail, drivers over 65 were responsible for 8% of all driving offences committed in 2017, compared to 3% committed by under-22-year-olds.
Hardly a fair comparison, given there are many more drivers aged 65 and over, than those between 17 and 22.
Given these numbers, the 23 to 64 age group are responsible for 89% of all driving offences!

 

[CherryVimto]

On my travels in a car I have (and so have many, many others) come across complete idiots on the road.

Out of all of the 'idiots' on the roads down here, I can honestly say that at no point have I actually had problems with an 'elderly' driver.
Yes, there have been times when they have slightly cut a corner in front of me or took several goes to get in a parking space but none have caused me to want to shout abuse at them for being a total plum!

So, do we think they should be retested annually...? YES, I think they should.

But, my reason for that is as we age our reactions get slower and our mobility decreases so we inevitably become more of a risk.

 

[zinc2000]

Interesting post really as I drive for a living and have done so for over 40 years.

Older drivers rarely cause me any hassle as although they tend to drive on the cautious side, ie, bit slow they are still safe as they think about things before actually doing anything so as long as you are patient they will get out of your way safely.
Problem with some/most younger drivers is they tend to act before they think about it!! potentially much more dangerous
As you gain experience with driving (and we all had to start somewhere) you should begin to drive more with your head and less with your feet, sadly with age your head takes longer to process the info and you risk reverting to the impatience of youth but without the reaction speed to go with it.
Re-test over a certain age? could be a good idea as some health issues go unreported for years while people try to hang on to their independence.
Reality is though that most drivers over the age of 40 will now struggle to pass a test so where do you draw the line?

 

[yippeekiay]

My next door neighbour is 90 years old and still drives daily, way way more than me as I seldom drive monthly (used the car last week for the first time this year to stock up the pantry). He does double the mileage yearly than the total I've done since I got my RX8 all of 8 or so years ago :shock:

Chances are he is a way better driver than most people including myself as he's had 70 years experience and zero, yep, zero accidents....so he's either exceptionally lucky, exceptionally cautious, the experience is a simple indicator as to why he hasn't had an accident in such a long time, or, his older wife who is always in the car with him makes sure to reign in his boyish excuberance behind the wheel :lol:

I'm guessing he's likely a lot more cautious now than in his younger days as Zinc describes with his head & feet analogy.

I'm surprised he can manage, when he first started driving I bet there was hardly any cars on the road (the joy!), but nowadays it's a nightmare. I hate driving through the daytime myself due to the traffic & bad driving I see everytime I venture out.

When/if I see much older people driving I tend to be a little more cautious myself, as I have seen some do unexpected moves. Albeit nowhere near as unexpected as a lot of other drivers. I just feel the older peeps have an excuse for it k:

All I hope for is that I am alive and as fit & healthy as the old chap, never mind being able to drive at that age. I'd have likely thrown away the keys to any transport long before I reach 90. If indeed I get anywhere near that age. :roll:

 

[red]

I'm not sure there's enough data on the matter to single out drivers over a certain age for retests.

You could just as easily say that peoples eyesight gets worse when they start getting to middle age, should there be a compulsory eye test for drivers? They could be driving around unable to see signs at a distance which is also unsafe.