Most optometrists have at least one patient a month who drives despite being told their eyesight is ILLEGAL

Most optometrists say they’ve seen patients in the last month who still drive despite being told their vision does not meet the legal standard.

Almost three in five (56 per cent) said they have at least one patient who remains on the road regardless of their poor vision – a sharp increase from two in five in 2019.

Of these, half (51 per cent) say they have more than one patient who continues to get behind the wheel knowing their eyesight is so substandard that it is deemed below the legal requirement.

The research comes from the Association of Optometrists (AOP), which wants changes to the law that require all drivers to have their vision checked when they first apply for a licence as well as each time they renew. 

For motorists under the age of 70, a renewal is required every 10 years, though for senior drivers it is every three years following their 70th birthday.

The findings are supported by a poll carried out among the public which showed that as many as one in every seven (14 per cent) people say they know a relative, friend or co-worker is driving despite having eyesight below the legal standard. A quarter (26 per cent) also have concerns about someone they know driving with poor vision.

A third (32 per cent) of the 910 UK-based optometrists surveyed said the number of patients they are advising not to drive due to poor vision has increased in the last three years.

However, there is a clear reluctance among motorists to give up the freedom of the open road. 

In a separate poll of 2,081 UK adults, only two-thirds who had licences said they would stop driving completely if a test showed their vision had fallen below the legal standard – more than one in 20 (6 per cent) would continue driving as normal.

The shocking report follows a number of high-profile convictions where motorists had been told to stop driving either by an optometrist or the DVLA.

In one such case, Neil Pemberton from Lancashire had been told that his vision was extremely poor and not to drive back in 2013.

He later took an eye test in 2016 to be told he had no vision in his right eye and very poor vision in his left eye – but informed the DVLA there was nothing wrong with his eyesight when renewing his licence.

Almost a decade after being told not to drive, he fatally hit another man crossing the road.

The warning around the number of motorists on the road with inadequate eyesight comes just weeks after police forces across the country carried out a national road safety campaign to conduct roadside eye checks on drivers.

It was launched to coincide with the clocks going back at the end of October and was extended into November.

‘Operation Dark Night’, backed by the National Police Chiefs’ Council, involved roadside vision tests while providing tips to drivers for maintaining clear vision under varying lighting conditions. 

Current eye test for drivers ‘dangerously out of date’

The 1937 Road Traffic Act states that motorists must be able to read a vehicle number plate from 20 metres – or approximately 65 feet – in good daylight.

However, there is no requirement for a repeat eye test during the remainder of a person’s driving career unless they inform the DVLA that they believe their vision has deteriorated. 

The Association of Optometrists argues that it should not be down to motorists to declare the quality of their eyesight, especially in the case of older drivers who legally have to renew their licence every three years.

Two thirds (65 per cent) of professionals believe the DVLA guidance is ‘dangerously out of date’ and more than three in five (63 per cent) believe it is putting people needlessly at risk of harm on UK roads.

Adam Sampson, chief executive of the AOP described the findings of the research as a ‘stark reminder of why our roads in the UK are not as safe as they should be’.

He said: ‘In the UK, the number plate test is not an adequate test of vision. It is carried out only once with a driving instructor, not a trained eye health professional.

‘A driver’s vision can then remain unchecked for the rest of their life.’

Adam said this approach is ‘flawed’ and ‘out of step’ with many other countries who use a full sight test to judge if a person is safe to drive.

‘What is deeply worrying is that we have a decade’s worth of evidence to highlight the risks, and the growing concern of eye experts,’ he went on.

‘Change is never easy. There was huge opposition to drink driving laws and the mandatory use of seatbelts – but these interventions save lives.

‘Our polling shows the majority of the public support the idea of mandatory regular sight tests for all drivers.

‘That’s why we are calling on the Department for Transport to update the law to ensure all drivers are required to have their vision checked and this should be done by reliable means.’

Professor Julie-Anne Little, past chairman of the AOP and research optometrist said many drivers are unaware that their vision has deteriorated over time and the impact it is having on their ability at the wheel.

‘Having poor eyesight has been shown to slow reaction times and the ability to drive safely – and it doesn’t take much for one mistake to result in a serious collision with catastrophic consequences,’ she explained.

‘As an optometrist, I’ve sometimes had to sit down with a patient to explain that their vision is simply no longer good enough to drive.

‘It is a difficult conversation, but one that is absolutely necessary – preventing them from putting themselves and others at risk.’