Coroner’s call for older driver eye tests after fatal crashes

An investigation into the death of four people killed by drivers with a bankruptcy view has found the application of visual legal standards for motorists is “ineffective and insecure.”

The Senior HM forensic for Lancashire, Dr. James Adeley, sent a report to the Secretary of Transportation Heidi Alexander to say that the action should be tasks to avoid future deaths.

He labeled the licensing system as the “most lax in Europe”, as noted that the United Kingdom was one of the only three countries to trust the self -report of visual conditions that affect the ability to drive.

Dr. Adeley said it was also worrying that the United Kingdom was the only European country to issue licenses without any visual control for a continuous period to 70 years.

He made the comments in the investigations of Marie Cunningham, 79, Grace Foulds, 85, Peter Westwell, 80, and Anne Ferguson, 75, previously held in the Court of the Preston Coronator.

Glyn Jones, 68, in his Audi A3, ran over Mrs. Cunningham and Mrs. Foulds, 68, in her Audi A3 while crossing the road in Southport, Merseyside, on November 30, 2021.

Jones was aware for a few years before the collision that his view was insufficient to meet the minimum requirement of driving a car, but could not declare it to the driving licenses and vehicles (DVLA).

When he was imprisoned for seven years and four months, his sentence hearing was to tolerate that he could not see his address.

Westwell was hit by Neil Pemberton, 81, while crossing the road in Langho, near Blackburn, on March 17, 2022.

Pemberton, who was imprisoned for 32 months, had a long history of ocular disease and was informed several times by different doctors who should not conduct, according to research.

Hello, also, repeatedly, he could not declare his view deficit in multiple license requests to the DVLA.

Mrs. Ferguson died when she was hit by a truck driven by Vernon Law, 72, in Whitworth, Rochdale, on July 11, 2023.

A month before the law was tolerated, he had cataracts in both eyes, but the song to an optometrist who did not drive.

Law, who was imprisoned for four years, knew that he had problems with his eyes for years before the collision, but his loss of view could be easily corrected.

The law also did not declare his view problems in multiple license requests to the DVLA, according to the investigation in County Hall.

After the investigations, Mrs. Cunningham’s family said: “Our mother and her friend were killed by the selfish and reckless actions of Glyn Jones.

“His decision to put his own comfort before the law, before ethics, before Human Viva, cost our family everything.

“This tragedy was not inevitable. It was completely avoidable.

“And we were dealing with the painful truth that if this man had acted responsible, our mother would continue with us.”

Terry Wilcox, or Hudgell Platitors, who represent the families of Mrs. Cunningham, Mrs. Fouds and Mr. Westwell, said: “People ignore what they tell them when they do not adapt to their lifestyle, and in reality there are breeders who step on people.

“We currently have a system under which the DVLA depends on drivers to self -report, deliver their license and stop driving when a qualified health professional has told them that their view is not at the request standard.

“This research has shown that it simply does not break.”

Dr. Adeley said: “The four deaths shared the same characteristic that the driver’s view was well below the standard required to drive a car.

“The current system to ‘guarantee’ drivers satisfy visual legal standards is ineffective, insecure and not suitable to meet the needs of society, as evidenced by the deaths of Marie Cunningham, Grace Foulds, Anne Ferguson and Peter Westwell, where the DVLA continued to provide licenses to drivers who had not met the legal view requirements.”

The transport department said it would consider the Forensic report once received.

A spokesman added: “The NHS recommends that adults must try their eyes every two years and drivers are legally obliged to inform DVLA if they have a condition that affects their view.

“We are committed to improving road safety and continuous to explore ways to achieve this.”