Driving vision regulations branded 'ineffective, unsafe and unfit'

Visual legal standards for motorists were claimed to be 'ineffective, unsafe and unfit' during an inquest into four peoples’ deaths caused by poor vision.

Following the inquest at Preston Coroner's Court, Dr James Adeley, HM senior coroner for Lancashire, sent a report to Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander to recommend actions to prevent future deaths.

Dr Adeley said: 'The four fatalities shared the same feature that the driver's sight was well below the standard required to drive a car.

'The current system for 'ensuring' drivers meet the visual legal standards is ineffective, unsafe and unfit to meet the needs of society as evidenced by the deaths of Marie Cunningham, Grace Foulds, Anne Ferguson and Peter Westwell, where the DVLA continued to provide licences to drivers who had failed to meet the legal sight requirements.'