Driving ages.

[Wenglish]

There has been another accident this weekend where a person has died following an incident where a car was travelling the wrong way down a major road, in this case the A1. The person involved was an 85 year old woman.
Last year my grandfather sold his car and decided he was no longer fit to drive and claims he should have done it years ago. He has a number of friends who can barely hold a cup of tea without spilling it but will happily pop off to town in their car and you would have to ory their licences from their hands to get them to stop driving.

We have a law that states a minimum age fir driving should we have a maximum or perhaps something else such as regular tests once a person reaches a set age?

 

[Pin-seeker]

Should definitely be tested once a year after a certain age.

 

[Imurg]

Should be "assessed" every 10 years until you're 70 and then every year or 2 after that.

The fact that we're not is, quite frankly, criminal.

 

[Odvan]

Definite re-test at 75, latest. Had the displeasure of finding out my ex father-in-law almost took out my then missus and little boy (as passengers) whilst on the motorway by simply failing to spot the traffic at a standstill. He had to slam on and swerve to avoid hitting some innocents and was fortunate to be in the inside lane so had the hard shoulder to bail him out. Skidded a further 30yrds...

 

[upsidedown]

Not just the oldies, we saw woman in her mid twenties turn off a roundabout against the flow of the traffic. Played today with two ex Motorway cops, unfortunately they had to witness another car crash today....... of my round....

 

[williamalex1]

After your 70 you have to re-apply for your licence every 1 or 2 years I think. I'll let you know you in 4 years time. Ask Rosie or one of the other older forum members.

 

[Wenglish]

I understand that at 70 you are required to renew your licence and then every 3 years however this does not require you to take any further tests or have a medical examination do check you are ok to drive. I understand that for many older people having a car enables them to keep their independence and they do not want to put others at harm but will do so rather than face the alternative.

On the flip side I know a couple of people in their 20s and 30s who I will not get in a car with and somehow managed to get a driving licence. One refuses to use the motorway, drive in poor conditions or at night as they dont feel confident in those situations. They have been driving for 10 years.

 

[williamalex1]

If you ask insurance companies who are the most likely to have a accident , its the young driver.

 

[Wenglish]

Yes and I believe I am a much more competent driver now at 29 than at 17. Younger drivers have a heightened sence of confidence and a lack of experience which does lead to more accidents of which ive seen far to many, there are more restrictions being placed on younger and new drivers and insurance companies are helping by promoting the use of tracking devices to ensure the car isnt used after a certain time of night etc with lower prices in exchange.

I think the roads are now a more dangerous place than they were and even comparing last summer to this one I have been more reluctant to go out on my bike when the roads are busy as I have noticed a lot more bad driving at peak times that as a cyclist I dont want to be anywhere near.

 

[Doon frae Troon]

Do the same rules apply to the 120 idiots driving in the fog in Kent last week ?
Biggest age group threat for the insurance companies are the under 20's.

My MIL is driving at the age of 82 now that is scary.

 

[SocketRocket]

I find that young women are very aggressive drivers and seem to have little understanding of how to control the car.

 

[Khamelion]

My dad is 77 this November, still drives and is very competent, he was a traffic officer on the bikes for over 30yrs, so has been in attendence of the aftermath of many a crash, some he talked about when I was a kid, but many others were not for my ears.

 

[chrisd]

I find that young women are very aggressive drivers and seem to have little understanding of how to control the car.

Me too. I'm usually overtaken on the motorway by young women driving small cars, with kids on board, doing clearly over 90 mph!

 

[ScienceBoy]

fog in Kent last week ?

Most of the east coast was under heavy fog. On my commute to work I didnt dare go above 40, about 1/3 of the cars had NO lights on. Visibility was down to 10m, but mostly 20-30 in the worst of it. Remind me again braking distances from 50mph?

It was almost unbelievable to see cars appearing out of nowhere and go racing by. Thankfully no-one overtook me and most people on my side of the road around me were driving sensibly.

I had never been happier to get to work that day.

 

[chrisd]

It's not many years ago that we had a similar accident in Kent where about 60 cars crashed in the Folkestone area in dense fog. I am sure there we're fatalities in that one. Most of the drivers were given a speed awareness course as mandatory or risk being prosecuted fr careless ( I think) driving

 

[Imurg]

Speed awareness courses simply don't work for the majority of drivers.

Anyone been on one?
Do you still break the limit?
Of course you do......

Youngsters are involved in most accidents simply because, in my view, they copy the illegal, dangerous and stupid actions that experienced drivers perform every day. The experienced drivers have that which cannot be taught - experience.
They have that split second more to react due to that experience. That split second gives them, or the other driver, enough time to get themselves out of trouble.
Youngsters don't have that split second.
Most crashes are caused by one or a combination of three things - Arrogance, Ignorance and Impatience...
Reassess EVERY driver periodically, not just for their skill but also their attitude

 

[Khamelion]

I've got mate who's been on two speed awareness courses, made no difference to his driving whatsoever, still drives very close to the ragged edge.

 

[sneill]

HID recently passed her test and to start I questioned how she got her licence however now after a years experience i finally feel i can safely be a passenger in the car and only use 1 seatbelt.

 

[HotDogAssassin]

Should be "assessed" every 10 years until you're 70 and then every year or 2 after that.

I agree with this.

 

[cookelad]

My old man has just returned from a visit to my 83year old grandmother this weekend, and has had to take her car keys off her, following yet another bump, telling her one day soon she'll have blood on the bonnet, how she has kept her licence since the age of 70 I'll never know - speeding & bumping into things, it's nuts!