Are older drivers more accident-prone? Spain plans to increase frequency of driving tests

The over-65s are behind 28% of accidents according to Spain's DGT traffic authority, despite accounting for only 15.5% of drivers on the road

Juan Roig Valor

Madrid

Monday, 15 July 2024, 11:56

In Spain, an estimated 15.5% of the 27 million drivers (some 4.1 million) are over 65 years of age. This segment of the population increased by 26.5% between 2001 and 2018 and, according to data from the national Directorate-General of Traffic (DGT), almost a third of fatal road accidents involve a driver over this age.

The recent accident in Vigo, in which a 95-year-old man reversed his car out of a parking space and drove through the terrace of a restaurant, knocking over 12 people, has reopened the debate about the fitness of older people to be behind the wheel.

The fact is that, in terms of accident rates, not fatalities, the over-65s have considerably lower accident rates than other age groups - half that of those aged 35-44 and four times less than the under-25s.

According to Álvaro Gómez , director of the DGT's National Road Safety Observatory: "in relation to the census, the difference in drivers over 65 is more in vulnerability than in the risk of involvement in an accident."

There is currently no upper age limit for driving in Spain. Whether or not an elderly person can drive is a matter for the psychophysical tests (auditory, visual and motor coordination tests) required when renewing driving licences.

Up to the age of 65, driving licences must be renewed every 10 years. This period is reduced to 5 years for drivers over this age and, in the next DGT directive, which includes the EU regulation from Brussels, it is envisaged that it will be reduced to two years for drivers aged 70 and over.

However, it is always at the discretion of the testers to further reduce the time period for a valid driving licence, which can be annual. In the case of professional and commercial drivers, driving licences must be renewed every five years in all cases and every three years after the age of 65.

For its part, Spain's current Law on Traffic, Circulation of Motor Vehicles and Road Safety, Article 13, also reaffirms that: "the driver must at all times be in a position to control his/her vehicle", but nothing is said about the maximum age for driving. There are minimum age limits for certain types of driving licences as well as the age at which driving licences must be renewed in order to continue driving.

Finally, according to the Barometer of Road Health in the Elderly, the months of July, October and September are particularly critical for traffic accidents among older people, with Fridays being the days when most accidents occur.

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