Stroud: Awareness campaign over safety of older drivers

Nigel Lloyd-Jones lost his mother in a collision when she was being driven by an older relative

It is time to "normalise" conversations with older people about their fitness to drive, a motoring group has said.

The Older Drivers Forum has been out in Stroud talking to people about how to decide when its time to give up their car keys.

The number of road casualties of people aged 65 and over increased by 160% between 2010 and 2019, according to the organisation's data.

This compares to a national average of 70% over the same time period.

Rob Heard, founder and chair of the Older Drivers Forum, said the increase was partially driven by people living and driving longer.

In the UK there is no age limit for driving, although after 70 drivers must renew their licence every three years and declare any relevant conditions.

Mr Heard said: "As we age there is a decline in cognitive and mobility functions and an increase in medical conditions - which may go undiagnosed - all which impact driving skills.

"In collisions older drivers are up to four times more likely to die or be seriously injured due to physical frailty and the side-effect of medications."

'Social taboos'

Mr Heard said older people are also often driving older cars with less crash protection, while in Gloucestershire they have they additional challenge of driving on mainly rural roads.

Nigel Lloyd-Jones co-founded the Gloucestershire branch of the group with his sister Alexandra after their mother died while being driven by another elderly relative who became confused over which pedal they were using.

He said before the crash both he and his sister had their concerns about the relative's driving.

"There are so many social taboos still around this subject, and it can be a deeply sensitive, speaking as a man, a lot of men are defined by driving and that was also the case with our family member," he said.

Driving advisor Paul Farrall say older drivers are sometimes 'relieved' to give up their car keys

Paul Farrall, a driving adviser with Driving Mobility, which offers driving assessments and advice on assisted driving and adaptations, said the main thing he was looking for was "awareness".

"We all make mistakes when we drive, it's really important that we are aware of that mistake and we can plan our way out of a situation," he said.

Mr Farrall said said sometimes drivers were "relieved" when told it was time to give up the car keys, while others find it much harder.

"Dealing with breaking news like that is a big part of what we do and we take it very seriously," he said.