Good vision is essential if you want to be a competent driver and legal eyesight standards for driving are very strict. Poor vision accounted for 196 accidents in 2018. Many of these collisions would have led to prosecutions, fines, and in some cases, complete bans from driving.
Burton Copeland and Driving Offence lawyer, Gwyn Lewis has recently written an article explaining the laws around vision, the legal eyesight standards for driving over on the Driving Offence blog (Driving Offence is our website specifically for driving related cases).
You can read the whole article here: What is the legal eyesight standard for driving? Section 96 of the road traffic act 1988 explained
In the article, Gwyn looks at the high profile news story about Dominic Cummings and his trip to Barnard Castle. He uses it as a case study to explore the laws surrounding eyesight and driving. Gwyn theorieses what might have happened if Dominic was stopped by police during that trip and lists the potential ramifications he could have faced if he failed a road side eye test.
Gwyn also lists the common questions people have regarding eyesight, vision, and driving law. He provides answers to these commonly asked questions:
- What is the law relating to eyesight and driving?
- Can the police request a roadside eye test?
- How do the police test a drivers eyesight?
- Can I refuse a driving eyesight test?
- What happens if I refuse a driving vision test?
- Do I need to tell the DVLA if I wear glasses?
- Do I need to tell the DVLA if I’m colour blind?
- When do I need to notify the DVLA in relation to my vision?
You can find answers to all these questions over on the driving offence blog: What is the legal eyesight standard for driving? Section 96 of the road traffic act 1988 explained