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About 'Don't swerve a sight test'

Our asks on vision standards for driving and what you need to know

Winter driving

The laws around vision standards for driving, first implemented in 1937, are not fit for purpose. Which is why our Don’t swerve a sight test campaign is about reminding all drivers to have regular sight tests. It’s the easiest way of making sure your visual acuity (a measure of how sharp or clear your vision is) meets the legal standard and is road safe while the law continues to fail road users.

What drivers should know

  • Sight often deteriorates slowly so you may not even notice a change to your vision
  • Driving with eyesight below the legal standard is dangerous to yourself and others
  • Have a sight test every two years, and encourage other drivers to as well
  • An appointment with an optometrist at your local opticians is quick, easy and pain free.

What we're calling for

  • All drivers should get their sight tested at least every two years, or more often if their optometrist recommends
  • All drivers should be legally required to have their vision checked when they first apply for a licence, and when renewing their driving licence – every ten years for most people, and every three years for those over 70
  • The check should involve standardised reliable tests, rather than the inadequate number plate test

What the public say?

Doubted vision

  • 30% of road users have doubted whether their vision is good enough, yet continued to drive

Delayed vision checks

  • Two-thirds (62%) of people who wear glasses or contact lenses are “putting off going to the opticians”
  • 36% are wearing an out of date prescription.

Won’t stop driving

  • One in 10 say they would continue to drive as normal even if they were told their vision, with glasses or contact lenses, was below the legal standard

Near misses

  • A third (31%) of the public believe they have had a near miss with a motorists they suspected had vision below the legal standard
  • Nearly one in five (19%) say they have had a collision (either as a driver, passenger, pedestrian or cyclist) with a motorist because of their poor vision.

More rigorous rules

  • Two fifths (38%) of UK adults think that the current laws on sight requirements in the UK for a normal car driver should be more rigorous
  • Most people (60%) support mandatory regular sight tests for all drivers, and over half of the public (54%) would like to see more frequent checks for older drivers.   

You can make a difference, download your campaign toolkit and help us make UK roads safer.

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