Most people delay eye test

More than half of potential patients have admitted putting off their eye exam for up to five years while others admit having never even been for one.

Simplyhealth Advisory Research Panel (ShARP) interviewed 1,000 people aged 40-75 about their vision and attitudes to eye checks. The panel found 8 per cent of people had never visited an optical practice, while one in seven were driving with substandard vision.

In total, 41 per cent of those surveyed had noticed deterioration in their vision but had done nothing about it. A third of the participants struggled to make out a menu or a sign, while one in five asked someone else to read it and one in eight borrowed someone else’s glasses.