Every so often there’s a flurry of moans about older drivers, especially when one of them drives the wrong way on a motorway or loses control in a car park.

Somehow these occasional events are more newsworthy than the more frequent serious motorway accidents, usually caused by younger drivers and resulting in fatalities and serious injuries.

Of course we really do need to consider the implications of old age in the light of the ‘baby boomer’ effect which means that the number of drivers over 70 is set to double in the next 20 years and the number of 90 year old drivers to rise by 18% in the next five years.

But just because someone is ‘old’ doesn’t necessarily make them a bad driver, assuming their physical fitness and eyesight is up to the job. So FOXY wouldn’t support any compulsory retesting on an age basis alone. In fact the evidence is that it’s young drivers that are over-represented in accident statistics, causing serious injuries and fatalities as a result of their lack of experience and motoring judgement.

Looking at the statistics behind all this, the facts are that ‘failed to look properly’ followed by ‘failed to judge other’s path or speed’ are the two main causes of accidents for young and older drivers alike. However, when the accident was caused due to a ‘loss of control’ or ‘careless, reckless or in a hurry driving behaviour’ the driver is twice as likely to be young than old.

Leading motoring group the IAM is keen to address these areas in terms of voluntary driver assessments and training, which FOXY supports. Their CEO Simon Best believes that the Government needs a strategy to manage more elderly drivers and make them more aware of the risks they face. The top priority should be non-compulsory driving assessments nationwide, he explains, to help them deal with modern high speed traffic and eliminate any bad habits. Not just that but better training for GPs and other medical staff is also needed.

What about older women?

When I talk to women drivers there is a definite interest in confidence boosting refresher courses to keep us all up to date. Of course we’re all different and some women are more confident and knowledgeable drivers than others regardless of age. However after driving for 20 years or more (and often considerably more) there will be many female (and male of course) motorists who haven’t kept themselves up to date with the latest Highway Code, would like to know more and have many questions they’d like answered, in a female friendly atmosphere and where others like them share the same concerns.

No-one can deny that older women drivers (over 60s+) tend to have more accidents than younger females but their accidents tend to be minor ones such as kerb damage to alloys and bumps in local supermarkets or car parks. More often than not these are caused by a lack of concentration and are then covered by the excess their insurance policy requires them to pay towards any claim. This is assuming they DO claim via the insurer rather than finding out how much it would cost if carried out by a female friendly FOXY approved bodyshop with the right skills and equipment. Which might be cheaper in the end.

Refresher driving courses for women

But perhaps there’s a demand for the equivalent of Vauxhall’s popular Women in the Driving Seat evenings where women drivers come together to learn about car maintenance, self defence and ways to handle road rage.

In this instance, refresher courses would be fun social occasions where women of all ages could share tips about driver concentration, coping with onboard distractions (children, older relatives and SatNovs) as well as the hazards of fast traffic and negotiating busy supermarket car parks.

They’d be able to refresh their knowledge of the Highway Code, have their eyes tested if in doubt, take confidential medical advice and be reminded about driving etiquette whilst learning from the experiences of their female peers.

Why wouldn’t this be a worthwhile exercise for ALL motorists to enjoy, on a regular basis throughout a driving career?

Even better if it came with an insurance discount for all those who had passed the refresher course with flying colours…

FOXY