The custodial sentence handed down to 96-year-old William Beer for causing death by dangerous driving after colliding with a fellow pensioner should serve as a sobering reminder to everyone about the serious dangers of driving with poor visual acuity.
Understandably, the story garnered some mainstream media coverage and a scan through reader comments highlight a broad gamut of reactions. Most expressed sorrow for the victim, some showed anger towards the driver, but others questioned whether it was worth sending a 96-year-old man to jail. I say to them: absolutely.
Not sending William Beer to prison would have sent the wrong message to those who drive with poor visual acuity, often ignoring the advice of optometrists and other healthcare professionals, just as Beer did.
Self-certification every three years after the age of 70 simply isn’t working and a new method of checking needs to be implemented. Beer did not report bilateral cataracts and macular degeneration on the most recent renewal and data from Glasses Direct estimates there are 1.2 million people who know they shouldn’t be driving but do so anyway.
So, what can be done when this happens?
The answer may well come from some of the online refraction platforms being used in Europe and the US. Online refraction could be used as a screening tool during a driver’s licence renewal process on the DVLA website. If a person fails the test, they are referred to a local practice for a full test by an optometrist who reports the findings to the DVLA.
Is such a system infallible? Obviously not. A driver could get someone else to take the test and implementing such a system when there are an estimated 10 million drivers over the age of 70 on the road is a logistical headache.
But it must be better than what’s in place now because too many people are slipping through the cracks. It’s a danger not just to other road users and pedestrians, but to the drivers themselves.