whilst out driving yesterday I came up behind a Rover 200 with no visible driver. The headrest was set to its lowest position, but with no sign of the driver's head.Could it be James Bond's latest remote-controlled car?
I eventually overtook, and saw that the driver was an old lady whose eyes were level with the bottom of the driver's window, and thus below the instrument 'binnacle', - she could only have been able to see the roofs of cars ahead.
Later I saw the same thing, this time with a Rover 600 and an aged gentleman.
Comments,anyone?
P.
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Don't knock the aged!
Most of them have had years of trouble free driving, without an accident. But they've seen thousands ...
Don't the old folk have to re-apply for a drivers license every year or so, when they reach a certain age?
What does this application/test entail?
(I'd ask Tomo, but he'd get grumpy!)
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A UK licence expires when you reach 70. You then have to go through the stingent and searching process of filling in a form and declaring whether you are fit to hold a driving licence or not.
I hope that re-assures you.
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A UK licence expires when you reach 70. You then have to go through the stingent and searching process of filling in a form and declaring whether you are fit to hold a driving licence or not. I hope that re-assures you.
I'm glad to hear the authorities have this one well in hand.
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Tom,
Does this process have to be repeated on a yearly basis (like an MOT) or is it a one-shot at 70? I know an elderly gent who recently lost the sight of one eye and uses sticky tape and a combination of wooden boards, mirrors and a dangling ping-pong ball to help him get his car into the garage (his drive looks like a runway at Heathrow Airport). With only one eye he lacks 3D awareness and I shudder to think what he's like on the road. The system seems to be self policing when it comes to eyesight, while I would have thought that either the hospital treating him or his GP should be feeding his changed medical circumstances back to DVLC.
I understand that his continued mobility is important to him (and have great sympathy for his plight), but is it worth someone elses (or indeed his own) life?
Rich
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RM,
I believe it is three yearly from 70 onwards. I am not sure about the role GP's or hospital staff can play if they warn a person that he is medically unfit to drive. I think there is a channel for them to inform the DVLA if they suspect a patient is continuing to drive against medical advice, though I can't be certain.
A friend of mine was out cycling a few years ago when he came across an elderly gent waiting to emerge from a minor road. This chap was holding a mirror in his hand, angled to see to the right along the major road he was trying to join. Presumably he had restricted neck movement and couldn't turn his head enough.
An ingenious solution to his problem, if potentially deadly.
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" This chap was holding a mirror in his
hand, angled to see to the right along the major road
he was trying to join. Presumably he had restricted neck movement and couldn't turn his head enough."
Serious reply:- Perhaps there is scope for an improvement to car exterior mirrors to help in such situations ?
Fun reply:- What about a rear window sticker "Wrinkly with restricted neck movement on board" !!! Mmmmmm......I'll have to keep my eyes open for one of those in case I ever need one.
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Scary as RM's tale may be, as long as the gent in question can read a number plate at the required distance, he can legally drive(!).
My Grandad ended up in hopsital a few years ago, and they decided he needed a pace maker. When asked what the consequences of not having it done were, the reply (after some medical jargon about dropping dead) was on the lines of you'll have to surrender your driving licence. The pacemaker was fitted the next day....
I think it's a requirement that you tell DVLA about any medical conditions, but I'd imagine the medical people have the power to get your licence suspended.
Richard
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I think it's a requirement that you tell DVLA about any medical conditions, but I'd imagine the medical people have the power to get your licence suspended.
When I was diagnosed as suffering from Sleep Apnea last year (OI WAKE UP) the medical people could only advise that I informed the DVLA, as it was in my best interests to do so - otherwise things like my insurance would be void if I were to have an accident through falling asleep at the wheel. They told me that they had no proceedures to inform DVLA themselves. I'm happy to say that the DVLA wrote asking me to fill in a questionaire once I had phoned them, and were satisfied that I was having medical treatment for it, they had no problems in letting me continue to drive.
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Regardless of age, I do occasionally see drivers in vehicles that they are too short to see out of adequately.
If there were any police still on the roads this would get picked up as not having proper control of the vehicle.
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Could have been a Filipino. Growlette and I piled in a cab the other day. I was behind the driver's seat and said where the hell is he. At which a round brown face (I suppose I can talk about brown and face together can I? without getting prosecuted I mean?)..a very small face anyway, peered round the seat at the height of my knee and beamed where did I want to go, and no his meter was working but not today and it's raining well that's double fare and so on..........
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"an old lady ............. and an aged gentleman"
In a few years, you will probably consider me to be old. When I am ?old? I hope that I will have the ability to recognise that I am ?old? and the sense to stop driving before I become unsafe to drive.
However, I?d like to point out that being ?old? is partly an attitude of mind as well as being the result of a deterioration in mental and physical abilities with advancing years. I?ve known some people who were ?old? the minute that they began wearing long trousers.
I hope that you will have the ability to recognise when your are too old to drive, and the honesty to take the step of actually stopping driving.
I think that it must be a very hard decision to have to make. To stop driving means losing a lot of ones freedom and mobility, and I personally don?t look forward to it one little bit.
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I wish my grandad had stopped driving years ago. he's dangerous. I think we all think the same. But to end his mobility would be terrible for him so you can see why 'old' people stay on the road.
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I'm sorry to have given the impression that I'm in any way 'ageist' when I started this thread,-no such inference intended,it just so happened that the two drivers mentioned were older than me! (I was 60 a month ago, I'm 6'3" and very slowly shrinking -should see my driving days out before I sink below window level, though!)
P.
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I'm sure that they were very safe on the road too. Especially if they were of sufficient age to have never taken a test!
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Two tiny elderly women were out driving in a large car -- both could barely see over the dashboard. As they were cruising along they came to an intersection.
The stoplight was red but they just went on through.
The woman in the passenger seat thought to herself "I must be losing it, I could have sworn we just went through a red light."
After a few more minutes they came to another intersection and the light was red again and again they went right through. This time the woman in the passenger seat was almost sure that the light had been red but was really concerned that she was losing it. She was getting nervous and decided to pay very close attention to the road and the next intersection to see what was going on.
At the next intersection, sure enough, the light was definitely red and they went right through and she turned to the other woman and said, "Mildred! Did you know we just ran through three red lights in a row! You could have killed us!"
Mildred turned to her and said "Oh, am I driving?"
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Two tiny elderly women were out driving in a large car -- both could barely see over the dashboard.
You're just jealous because they had a large car....!!
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.......I understand a common response in the S.W. Florida Highway Patrol incident centre when they get a call to say there's been an accident on the nearby interstate is:
"..Jeez, not again. How many more retired Jewish dentists driving 1979 Cadillacs can there BE?"
(I got that from a friend....)
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