In today's episode, we are gonna talk about drive-in for the over seventies. Now Kev, we're doing this because you were asked recently to help out ITV News Anglia with a piece about exactly this.

It was, and it was all about, why people don't have to take a, a test at 70, but also what's the reason behind they have to renew their license at 70. So the piece was all about that. Really?

Yeah. And they gave us A little list of questions and you prepared some material, and then when it came down to it, they did the recording and they just used the tiniest, tiniest piece of what you'd recorded and what you'd done. So we decided to make the best use out of it and. Make a podcast episode out of it.

Exactly. And it, I think people need to know all of all of the things really. So there was lots of different information, but it was mostly, and the article was mostly about the eyesight, but now we want to talk about it in more detail.

Yeah. The other areas. So the first question that they wanted to know is, why do people over the age of 70 have to renew their driving license?

Okay, so let's this. Bring this back a little bit to start with. So what happens at the moment is 90 days before your 70th birthday, you are gonna get a form in the post, and the form is called a D four six P. And what happens is, this is the form that you fill in and you also go online to do this as well, but it's the both the form and the online bit that you can use to renew your license at 70. So you're not gonna lose your license or anything, but you have to renew it to start with. So what is this form all about? And this is what people tend to panic about is, oh, they're gonna take my license away. So it's not really about that. What it is, it's a self-assessment really, of your health, and it asks you questions like, has your health deteriorated? In so many years and you have to answer the questions and we'll talk a little bit more about the type of questions they're gonna ask you, but also we'll talk about things that you should be doing anyway. Because we all know as we get older, we are not as young as we used to be. Yeah,

And I was thinking that while you were talking. So in my other role outside of driving confidence, I work in a cancer care setting, and this is a big issue all the time for a lot of our patients it's important to report whatever your age. It's not just about waiting until you are 70 and over. If you have a change in your health condition, you may well need to report it.

it. Exactly. And when you, people don't realize this, when you sign to have your license, when you passed your test, part of the declaration is when you sign. That is that you will notify the D V L A if your health changes. And that's what you need to do. And I know a lot of people rely on their driving to help them in life in general. But this is about a self-assessment, cuz everybody wants to keep safe on the road and this is what this is about. And I know through my experience that people don't realize that their health has changed, especially eyesight. But I know we're gonna talk about that in a little while.

Yeah. And remembering this as part of a community agreement, almost you are relying on other drivers to self-assess themselves correctly and they are relying on you to self-assess yourself correctly so that we can all be safe on the road. Not to mention the fact of It Invalidates your insurance as well.

Exactly. And you, you know, you've gotta be truthful. Yeah. You know, we don't want anybody to be involved in crashes. That could have been, prevented

definitely Okay. So the next question that they asked you was, why is it that over seventies don't automatically have to retake a driving test?

So the first thing is you've already passed your test. You know you've passed your driving test to the standard on that day, and yes, you may well have picked up some bad habits, but this is when you get to 70. We don't want to take your driving license away or have a retest. What we want to do is to make sure you are still fit and healthy. To be able to drive basically one of the stipulations is about your eyesight. And can you read a number plate from the required distance? And the distance is 20.5 meters, so say 20 meters away. Can you read one of the new style number plates? And when I say new style, what I mean is that the ones that have two letters, two numbers, three letters. so that is the new style number plate that you know most people have now, and that's the number plate that you should be able to read with glasses, contact lenses, or without, from that required distance.

Okay. So yes, we're not talking about if you need glasses that it's a problem. The point is, is that how are your glasses, are your contact lenses the correct strength to enable you to see that

Yes. And this is, you know, this is part of this. Most people up to this point, and when I say most people up to 50 probably don't get their eyesight tested because they've noticed no change. In their eyesight because it's been very, very gradual. Yeah. You know, and we all go through that and we are using computers now a lot more and smartphones, so our eyes are just getting adjusted. But what you might notice is that you are looking at those screens a little bit closely, so the phone's getting closer to your eyes or even further away. Yeah. You know, so again, you know little clues that you might be able to do, but what we are not doing is we're not having to retake your test. Yeah. We're just doing a self-assessment health form, basically.

okay. Lovely. So the other question that they asked was, why can drive-in become more difficult as people get older? So obviously we've already touched on that a little bit with the eyesight, but what are the other things that tend to affect drive-in as people get older?

Okay. And another thing with the eyesight, have regular eyesight checks. So recommended every two years as a minimum, you know, this is what you wanna be doing. So with the eyesight is keep up to date with your eyes, make sure they're good. but we also might notice that our hearings changed.

Yep.

You know, we don't notice that it's changed until, we don't hear those sirens. We don't hear people bebb in their horns. So again, you know, do you need a hearing aid? And there's some fantastic ones out on the market, but again, it's something for you to have checked.

Yeah. And this is important, isn't it? Because it's been able to hear your car, hear other vehicles, hear emergency vehicles, your sense of hearing is really important to the overall picture of what's happening on the road around you.

Exactly, and that's what we want to do. You know, we want to be check in, I'm gonna say this again, that you are safe to drive and you are safe for others as well.

Yep. Got it.

So something else that may well, and I know does affect people is new technology. So again, you're not self-assessing this on the form, but when you are getting a new car up to date cars, they can be very confusing or even distracting as well. So these new cars have fancy displays and it's like, Whoa, what's happening here? New cars make noises. When you're reversing, they've got, uh, sensors on the back that beep. And when you get closer to something, that beeps as well. So again, it might well be that that causes you stress and anxiety. Although it's there to help you, it might actually have the adverse effect of that. So again, you know, You know, when you're thinking about new cars, the brakes feel different. New cars are so much quieter now. We've got electric cars that you don't even hear.

Yes. Yeah. They're hard to, I mean, they had to put, they had to put sounds back into them, didn't

That's right.

Yeah.

Um, you also think about, you know, the speeds of the cars because they're so quiet. You don't realize that you're doing 50 miles an hour because it feels like 40. So again, this can be very distracting and confusing for people. Oh, I didn't realize I was going that speed. But again, there's also safety devices on the cars now as well. You've got cruise control, speed limiters. You've got adaptive cruise controller, even brakes for you in most normal cars so this is part of standard equipment, but then we're also going into autonomous vehicles as well. But again, that's a whole new podcast, that one. So I, I'll just leave it there, but, With new technology and new cars, just make sure you familiarize yourself with the vehicle.

Yeah, and I'm just thinking again, as you are talking, if you can overcome. The reluctance to get to know new technology if it's not your thing. If you can overcome any feeling concerns or feelings of confusion, then actually this new technology can really help you out at any age, not just as you mature.

Yeah, no, they, they're called driver aids, aren't they? Yeah. And this is what they're there, but again, if we are not used to them, it can be very off-putting. Yeah. And it's like, oh, what's happening? It, it sets a seed of doubt in people's mind, you know? And that's what can happen.

So it's maybe just taking one at a time, being patient with yourself, learning what it can do, and taking it in bite-sized chunks so that you learn how to use it to best help you.

So, another, how do I phrase this without, as we get older our reaction times slow. Yeah. Or they slow, get slower than what we used to. But because it's a gradual process, we don't notice that. and what this means is we just get used to it. I'm not doing anything different to what I've always done. Yes, but in actual fact, you are, your 25 year old self would act far quicker than your 65 year old self. So again, can we react quicker? Our reaction times. It's natural, isn't it? It's natural. As we get older, we don't react quick enough, but just think about it. Are we acting or reacting the way that we should be on the road? So again, just bear that in mind, I think is the,

and I suppose one of the clues, there might be more little incidents happening where perhaps Something ha unsettling happened that maybe wouldn't have done if you had reacted a little bit quicker previously.

Yeah. And I think it's, um, look, one of the classic ones is harsh breaking, isn't it? Yeah. You know, you see something happening and. Oh yeah, I've harsh brake there. You feel it a little bit more. So that's one of the classic ones for our reaction times. Um, but we might, you know, we might be thinking of other things. The radio might be, like I've mentioned the distractions in the car. Yes. And added that with our reaction times as slower, you know, it's, it's a double whammy there, isn't it? So, you know, just be aware of what's happening.

Yes. Look out for those little clues. If driving's feeling more stressful, if you're having. More things like you say, harsh breaking or annoying other road users for one reason or another. Then just start to take notice of that and see whether there's any tactics or strategies that you can use to improve that.

Yeah, exactly. So something else as well. We get older. And we tend to lose our memory. And then we always have this little joke about, you know, you go upstairs and you forget what you went upstairs

Yeah.

You know, that's a, a general,

that's not older. That's,

it's

that's been happening for years.

It's just part of it, isn't it? But in a driving sense. This is, you know, something that needs to be looked at. It might be the first stages of dementia or Alzheimer's, you know, so, become aware of, you know, do I, do I do that a lot? You know, am I getting, and it may well be that it's just a case of getting older, but you know, Bear that in mind and maybe get checked. It's always worth finding these things out at an early stage. Yeah.

Sooner rather than later.

Exactly. But one of the, the triggers is for, uh, dementia or Alzheimer's is people get disorientated. And if you think about you, you know, you go to the shops or you go visiting people and you use the same route all the time and it's all good. How do you feel with the roads closed and you have to make a diversion. Yeah. You know, this can be, does it cause you panic now? Because it's, what am I doing? What's happening? I'm not sure what's that. Could well be a sign that the memory is not quite what it used to be. You know, because that disorientation it's is, it's different, isn't it? And that could cause you to act and probably get annoyed with yourself as well, because you, you know what you should be doing, but it doesn't, you can't do it. And that's, you know, one of the forms of dementia.

Yeah. It can be a really early sign. And our brains don't like change. So in fairness, for all of us, if we see there's a road diversion, then there's a little like, oh no, which way am I gonna go? So you have that sort of, P that momentary, sort of like, oh, what should I do? If that turns into something that actually leaves you feeling very distressed, very confused, very disorientated, then you need to take notice of that.

and it's very similar to busy situations. If you find yourself in, busier situations and there's a lot of information to take in and you can't quite cope, you know, this again is something to bear in mind and just start thinking, maybe I will get tested. Yeah. You know, you still can drive. If you are in early stages of dementia or Alzheimer's, they're not gonna take your license away for that. But if you are being assessed, they'll be able to monitor you. And this is what this get into 70 means, let's monitor you. Let's have a look to see whether or not you are safe, and it's about a self assessment. Be honest and just say to yourself, yeah, maybe I do need. To, to get looked

Yeah. And just, it's just keeping an eye out for these things. So again, it's quite a natural reaction if you're in a busy situation. Lots of things happening. Most of us as drivers at any age can feel a little bit unsettled and can feel that the information's coming at us almost in a way that you feel a bit under siege or under attack. And the trick there for, for most of us, is to slow things down. Give ourselves a bit more space in front of us, behind us, slow things down so that we can manage the speed of information in a way that's more comfortable. It's when you can't do that any longer and you are not able to think about the strategies. If that's linked to some of the other things that we've mentioned along with aging and other little clues in your life, then maybe it's time for a bit of exploration about what's going on.

And, you know, that leads lovely onto when we get older, younger drivers make us feel anxious. Yes.

Yes.

If you younger drivers have less fear sometimes, but they might just have quicker reactions and you are thinking, well, I couldn't stop in that time. You can't stop in it. And again, the, the tension and the anxiousness and the stress levels increase. So again, you know, driving with younger people around, might make you cause to drive faster. To get away from them or slow down. So again, you know, you, you are trying to control them but then they get closer.

Mm-hmm.

But then that might have you react in a different way where you end up stalling the car because you feel panic. This younger driver behind me, he corners me to go quicker. But then you concentrate on something else and you're not being as more as observant as you normally are. Which means we are making bad decisions. Because we are feeling stressed and you know, what happens when we are stressed? Is this over information overload,

isn't it? Yes. Yeah.

Which might lead us to start thinking about other things rather than what we want or need to start concentrating on.

Yeah, if you're spending too much time thinking about other people, are you concentrating enough on your own driving? And again, this, this goes for everybody at all ages, doesn't it? It's just that it, you might find that it's more of an issue the older you get, but it is important to concentrate on what you are doing.

Exactly. Yes. We are using this for older drivers. You know, we said the seventies and over when they renewed their license, but this goes for anybody. Yeah. You know, and we talk about stress and anxious. People and drivers. So yeah, if you're listening to this and some of these things are hitting home, just have a think about, you know, what coping strategies have I got. One of the other things that comes up is, epilepsy. We've had a few lately, um, conversations where people are, have one episode. And again, what happens is you have to tell the D VLA straight away. And what happens is they put your license on pause as as I quite like

that. Yeah, that's a nice phrase, isn't it?

And what happens is they will decide on the action that you've got to take. It might well be that they say, right, for a year, you need to be a year clear of one of those seizures before you can get your license back. You know, it might be something different, but it's normally a minimum of. Just waiting a year before you get your license back and then you're back driving again. You know, I think that's one of them, but again, any physical disabilities or visual impairments, the D V L A need to know this as well. So, just make sure that you are on this form, or if you're pre 70 that you, you notify them or at least check as well. Um, another one is diabetes. And it's, it's in the news quite a lot lately, isn't it? With people, suffering from type one or type two diabetes. But again, if you have that condition, you need to notify the D V L A because again, if you are using insulin, it may well affect the way you drive. Yeah.

Yep.

So they again, will make that decision it based on what your doctor says as well. So again, you know, it's not just the D V L A saying no, they will consult a doctor.

Yeah. And often, so with diabetes it, it often becomes more complicated when you are older, combined with other medical conditions as well. So on its own, in a younger person, they need to know, but it tends to be less of an issue. Compared to somebody in their late seventies with other conditions going on at the same time.

But there are assessments centers that people can go to and have their drive in assessed, you know, and I think they are, the people there are trained to deal with these conditions. So they are the first port of call, I feel. And again, if you just want your drive-in, assessed, get a professional, get a drive-in instructor to just take you out for a drive. And if you get a new car, Get the garage or the driving instructor to say, look, can you spend some time with me just explaining what this is? Yes. Because again, it's gonna make you feel better, isn't it? So all of these things I think we should be doing regularly. Yeah. Just to make sure that we are keeping up the standards, but also keeping you and everybody else safe as well.

I remember seeing one of the assessment centers in it was a B B C program about dementia, and they were. Following different people of different ages. And there was quite a young man who had a genetic type of dementia that was very early onset, and he had to have his driving assessed at the center regularly so that he could still drive. So yes, I remember seeing the assessment centers, and of course you've had a couple of people that you've assessed following a stroke.

Yeah, it's not trying to, you know, I'm not gonna say I'm taking your license away. I'm just there to assess your driving, and we've had it recently with a close relation with ours where we've had to say, You can't drive. You are, although they really, really needed or they thought they really, really needed their car to do stuff, it's not safe. So. Where do you draw the line? You have to think safety in these instances and we, no one wants to be involved in something, and that's the key to this. We don't want anyone involved in anything that's gonna cause harm. Yeah. So you, yes, we might. Need it or want to drive. But in actual fact, you can get a taxi. you can get a bus. There might be friends that can drive you, to somewhere. So there's always an alternative and I think that's what we are trying to encourage when you look at people, is to make the right decisions.

Definitely. So we hope that's maybe given you a bit of food for thought. Maybe if you are an older driver yourself or potentially if you've got relatives, friends who are approaching 70 and beyond, or who maybe have some health conditions. We will include all of the resources in the show notes so that if you do need to find a bit more information out about this subject, there's some links in the show notes. So it's nice and easy for you to find them either for yourself or to share with others. Yes,

Yes, and I think it's something that we should be encouraging people, not just, when they get to a certain age, then we start doing it. Yeah. Encourage people, you know, when you're getting to 50

Yeah. Start thinking about

having your driving assessed. You probably passed your test when you were 17, 18. But they never have their driving assessed all the way through. Yeah. And technology and conditions have changed so much. What's it gonna cost you? An hour? Yeah. An hour of your time. Just as someone say, yep. But have you thought of this when you are driving,

Mm. And I'm thinking even beginning to future plan. So at what stage do I anticipate driving to what might I do in the future if this happens? Say that you are a little bit more mentally prepared for what you might do. If something happens in the future, that means you can no longer drive.

Yeah, and I think that's exactly, that's a really nice point. That is we already starting to plan for it. So, yeah. No, great. I love that.

Yeah. Brilliant. Okay, hope that helps. Let us know. We love to hear from you. And as I said, all of the links in our contact details are in the show notes as always. So all that leaves us to do is to say, until next time, have a great day. Whatever you're doing.