When I die, I want to go peacefully in my sleep, like my grandfather, and not screaming like his passengers. It’s an old joke, and a tasteless one some might say, but it does shed light on an important issue. Should elderly drivers be forced to undergo some kind of regular testing in order to keep their driver’s license after they reach a certain age?

We all know the stereotype of a little old man behind the wheel who can barely see over the dashboard, driving half the speed limit with his left turn signal flashing for all eternity. But a question we need to ask ourselves is: do elderly drivers actually cause more accidents than other age groups, are they the ones that contact Heninger Garrison Davis more often?
The answer is a resounding no. Statistics obtained by Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) show that, in fact, the opposite is true: the older the driver, the less likely you are to be involved in a car accident. Nevertheless, the issue for mandatory retesting for elderly drivers has been raised yet again, and in the same fashion that it always has.

Recently, a ten-year-old girl was struck by a car in a bizarre accident. Winnipeg Police report that the driver was pulling out of a parking stall, and then continued to speed backwards for fifty meters—nearly the entire length of the parking lot—before his vehicle struck the child. The car did not come to a stop until it hit a nearby tree. The driver of the car was 86 years old.

The young girl was injured quite badly, but thankfully her condition was stabilized after she was brought to the hospital, but still, her family knows they need the top personal injury attorney pasadena for her. But regardless of the circumstances surrounding this particular accident, the question of mandatory retesting for senior citizens has arisen again, as it always does when a collision involving an elderly driver takes place.

Manitoba would not be the first to implement such a policy. Ontario already requires drivers over the age of 80 to undergo regular written and vision tests and Alberta also requires drivers over the age of 75 to have their eyesight checked.

But MPI is reluctant to implement any such policy and, statistically speaking; it is understandable why this might be so. On paper, younger drivers are the more dangerous demographic. Younger drivers are more prone to speeding, drinking and driving, talking on cell phones and basically every single other risky driving habit. So why pester seniors when it is obvious that young people are the true scourge of the highways?

The problem is that this is comparing apples to oranges. Young drivers may indulge in riskier driving habits, but there are laws to curb them. There are stiff monetary fines in place to deter people from speeding or talking on their phones while driving. If you get caught drinking and driving, you stand to lose your license, your vehicle, and very possibly even your freedom.

But the risk that comes with elderly drivers on the road is entirely different. The danger that senior citizens might pose while driving doesn’t come from the reckless choices they make. It comes from the simple reality that as we age, our motor skills deteriorate. It doesn’t matter who you are; your eyesight will blur, your reflexes will slow, and your wits will become muddled. It happens to every single one of us.

MPI says that they don’t need to regularly retest elderly drivers because they already keep close track of people with bad driving records. If people demonstrate that they are dangerous drivers, MPI keeps a close eye on them and requires them to demonstrate that they deserve to keep their license. That’s great, but a person can go their entire lives as a perfect driver and never get a blemish on their record, and that still doesn’t mean that their eyesight might not deteriorate to a dangerous level when they’re 80. Why would we not want to take a more proactive approach to this problem? Do we have to wait until someone finally does get into an accident before we take their license away, allowing a tragedy that was entirely preventable?

We take measures to curb the dangerous driving habits to which young people are more prone. I feel it is foolish not to take measures to curb the dangers aging drivers are prone to as well.