Britain is set to introduce sweeping new road safety reforms, with a particular focus on older drivers. From January 2026, motorists aged 70 and above will be required to undergo mandatory eye tests every three years, as part of the government’s first comprehensive road safety strategy in over a decade. The reforms, which will be published in full this week, are designed to reduce fatalities and serious injuries on the nation’s roads while balancing the independence and well-being of older drivers.
The move comes as government figures reveal that nearly one in four car drivers killed in collisions in 2024 were aged 70 or older. Older drivers also accounted for 12% of all car crash casualties. These sobering statistics have prompted calls for urgent action, especially as Britain’s population continues to age and the number of senior motorists rises.
Currently, drivers in the UK must be able to read a number plate from 20 metres away, a standard set in the 1930s. However, after obtaining a license, drivers of any age are not required to prove their vision or health again. The system relies on self-reporting: motorists are expected to inform the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) if they become unfit to drive. Critics say this approach is outdated and open to abuse.
Dr James Adeley, Senior Coroner for Lancashire, highlighted the dangers of self-reporting in a report to Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander last year. He noted, “Self-reporting of visual conditions permits drivers to lie about their current driving status to those performing an ophthalmic assessment and avoid warnings not to drive. Drivers may also admit they drive but then ignore instructions not to drive and fail to notify the DVLA.” According to BBC News, the UK is one of only three European countries to rely on self-reporting for visual conditions that affect driving ability.
The push for reform was further galvanized by a tragic series of incidents. An inquest in Preston heard that four people—Mary Cunningham, Grace Foulds, Anne Ferguson, and Peter Westwell—were killed in traffic collisions where the driver had defective eyesight. In each case, the driver’s vision was well below the legal standard. As Dr Adeley wrote in his prevention of future deaths notice, “The four fatalities shared the same feature that the driver’s sight was well below the standard required to drive a car.”
Under the new strategy, drivers over 70 must have their vision checked every three years. The government also plans to end the self-reporting system for visual diseases among elderly drivers, in direct response to multiple coroners’ warnings. The reforms are the most extensive since the Road Safety Act of 2006, according to The Daily Mail.
Other measures in the proposed strategy include lowering the drink-driving limit in England to match Scotland’s stricter threshold—down from 35 to 22 micrograms of alcohol per 100ml of breath. This change means that even a single pint could put some drivers over the limit, as alcohol is processed at different rates by different people. Additionally, the government is considering issuing penalty points not only to drivers but also to passengers who are found not wearing seatbelts. Currently, only passengers with a driving license can receive penalty points for this offense.
Fines for uninsured motorists are also set to increase, with upfront penalties possibly rising to £600. The government’s overarching goal is ambitious: to cut road deaths and serious injuries by 65% by 2035, and by 70% for children under 16.
Lilian Greenwood, the local transport minister, emphasized the need to balance safety with independence: “We know driving is important for older people’s well-being and independence, but we must ensure everyone on our roads is safe. As the country’s older population grows, this first road safety strategy in over a decade will balance personal freedoms with measures to save lives.”
The reforms have sparked a lively debate among motoring groups, charities, and the public. Edmund King, president of the AA motoring organisation, welcomed the changes, noting, “Eye tests are free for people over the age of 60 anyway and healthcare professionals advise them every two years given they can help with diagnosis of other underlying conditions. In fact, the AA advises everyone to have an eye test every two years.”
Some older drivers have voiced strong support for the new rules. Moira Hutchings, 71, from Farnborough, said, “I have annual eyesight tests as I have always had problems. How anyone cannot, at my age, be checked out is beyond me.” Robert Owens, also 71, from Wrexham, called for even broader reforms: “This issue does not purely affect the over-70s. My first question [for the optician] is am I optically fit to drive, and thankfully I have been to date. If they said no I would no longer drive.”
However, not everyone is convinced that targeting older drivers is the best approach. Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, argued, “It is certainly good for our eye health as we age to have a regular eye test—every two years the NHS advises—but this doesn’t automatically mean that a compulsory eye test at age 70 is appropriate. People can develop eye problems at any age so why confine such an approach only to those aged 70 and not to younger drivers too? A regular eye test for drivers of all ages may be a better idea, one less open to the accusation of ageism.” She added, “From the data we have seen there is no reason to suppose that eye problems lie behind a significant proportion of these accidents. Therefore, while there may be a case for introducing a regular mandatory eye test for drivers of all ages, it is not clear that this would have a big impact on the numbers of serious accidents involving older drivers.”
Experts have also warned about the potential unintended consequences of the new rules. Professor Andrew Steptoe, director of the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing, cautioned, “Older people are at great risk of becoming socially isolated as people of their generation pass away and younger family members move to set up their own households. If more older people are unable to drive, efforts need to be made to offset any reductions in social contact and to maintain active engagement with friends, family and the community.”
Rebecca Guy, senior policy manager at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, summed up the challenge: “Regular vision checks are a sensible way to reduce risk as we age, but the priority must be a system that supports people to drive safely for as long as possible, while ensuring timely action is taken when health or eyesight could put them or others in danger.”
With 1,633 people killed and more than 27,000 seriously injured in road accidents in 2024—amounting to one casualty every 18 minutes—the stakes for Britain’s road safety strategy could hardly be higher. As the government prepares to roll out its most comprehensive reforms in decades, the coming months will reveal whether these measures can deliver on their promise to save lives while preserving the independence of Britain’s older drivers.
