Are older drivers more at risk of accidents? Spain plans more frequent driving tests

In Spain, an estimated 15.5% of the 27 million drivers (around 4.1 million) are over 65 years old. This proportion of the population increased by 26.5% between 2001 and 2018 and, according to the national General Directorate of Transport (DGT), almost a third of all fatal road accidents involve drivers over this age.

The recent accident in Vigo, in which a 95-year-old man reversed his car out of a parking space and onto the terrace of a restaurant, knocking over twelve people, has reignited the debate about the ability of older people to drive.

In fact, the accident rate among those over 65, measured by the accident rate (not the number of deaths), is considerably lower than among other age groups: it is half that of those aged 35 to 44 and four times lower than that of those under 25.

According to Álvaro Gómez, director of the DGT’s National Road Safety Observatory, “the difference among those over 65 compared to the census is more in vulnerability than in the risk of being involved in an accident.”

Currently, there is no upper age limit for driving in Spain. Whether or not an elderly person can drive depends on the psychophysical tests (hearing, vision and motor coordination tests) required when renewing the driving license.

Up to the age of 65, the driving licence must be renewed every 10 years. For drivers over this age, this period is reduced to 5 years and the next DGT directive, which takes up the EU regulation from Brussels, provides for this period to be reduced to two years for drivers over 70.

However, it is always at the discretion of the examiner to further shorten the period of validity of the driving licence, which can be one year. For professional drivers and commercial drivers, the driving licence must be renewed every five years and every three years after the age of 65.

The current Spanish Law on Traffic, Motor Vehicle Traffic and Road Safety states in Article 13 that “the driver must be able to control his vehicle at all times”, 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 the licence must be renewed in order to continue driving.

Finally, according to the Traffic Health Barometer for Older People, the months of July, October and September are particularly critical for road accidents among older people, with Friday causing the most accidents.