Older people review of driving skills
This assessment is for older drivers who would like to update their skills or feel they have lost confidence. It can be particularly useful to have an assessment before applying to renew your licence as the report can be used to advise DVLA of how safe you are when driving.
Our aim is to help older drivers continue driving safely for as long as they can.
Driving safely
As vehicles become more sophisticated and roads busier, the need for updating driving skills as we get older becomes more important and there is a clear need to help people maintain safe driving.
Just about everything involves risk, and motoring is no exception. By understanding the risk and taking steps to minimise it, you can help keep yourself and others safe. We therefore offer advice to help drivers think about their driving and make the right decisions to stay safe and independent. This may include retirement from driving, or how to continue driving safely and comfortably, or how families can help older drivers stay on the road for as long as possible.
A variety of organisations play their part in helping to keep older drivers on the road safely for longer, they provide practical and informative help and support to assist older people to continue driving longer, if it is safe to do so. They would also identify if an assessment is needed if medical issues are highlighted.
A guide to this can be found here https://www.ridc.org.uk/content/older-drivers-driving-safely-life
Assessment
Once we have assessed your driving we can then give advice on what to do next. This may be
- Confirming you are still safe
- Suggesting a period of retraining to update your skills and gain more confidence.
If it is established that you need to stop driving, we can help you through the driving retirement process as we know this can be a difficult time, both emotionally and in terms of continuing to do the things you want to in your local community.
We have vast experience in helping you plan how you can continue to access your local community. You can access this service through the Regional Transport Hubs
Driving retirement
For all of us, being able to drive on the public highway is a privilege rather than a right, and it is therefore recommended that all drivers should consider how they will eventually retire from driving. This may be in response to economic issues eg:
- cheaper to use another form of transport,
- environmental concerns,
- no longer wish to drive
- no longer safe to drive
Everyone needs a Retirement Plan – and one for driving is no exception. It is an activity which also directly affects our family and friends, so they should be involved in a Driver’s Plan, in just the same way as retirement from a job.
Health/fitness changes and age-related conditions can eventually mean that there is a point when we must give up driving. This point is different for each individual person; there isn’t a set age at which all drivers become unable to drive safely.
To start to think about retirement from driving, take look at our leaflet, to assist you in thinking through the options open to you. You may wish to work through the options on this leaflet with family, or perhaps with a Health Professional. If you require extra help please contact a Regional Transport Hub.
Some of the alternatives which you might wish to consider along with your family in discussing retirement from driving can be used to replace some or all of your driving. It’s a good idea to try them out first, before you start thinking about stopping driving. Talk to friends who use them, and maybe go along with them to try them out.
You can refer yourself to a centre or you can be referred through a health professional, by Motability or the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).