Every day bad drivers cause accidents on the road. Most of the time nobody gets hurt, there’s an insurance claim or two to fix a bent bumper and everyone lives happily ever after. Sometimes it’s a lot worse. Sometimes cars, bikes, and worse, lives are destroyed. So road traffic accidents are a bad thing; to be avoided at all costs. Of course, they’re not always caused by bad driving, but they usually are. And when they are, and someone gets hurt, should the bad drivers responsible be made to retake their test?
Imagine you’re riding down the road, minding your own business and a car pulls out of a junction and knocks you off your bike. Some of you wont have to imagine it, you’ll have been there. Now imagine the same car driver gets in his car the very next day and does exactly the same thing. It’s only a matter of time before he or she does someone some serious damage.
So what do we do? Do we let them keep on driving dangerously until it lands them with a ‘death by dangerous driving’ charge? Or do we say enough is enough after the first accident and make them retake their test?
Beats me…
I’m not sure what the right answer to this is. There are plenty of bad drivers out there that could definitely use some ‘education’ behind the wheel. And there are plenty of driver improvement courses out there that I’m sure they’d benefit from. But you don’t very often hear of them being mandated by the old bill/a court/VOSA or whoever. Sometimes I think they should use their powers to do so, more often.
But then other times, I don’t. Because if someone’s spent 20 years driving without due care and attention, it’s probably going to take more than a two-day course for them to change their ways. In fact, all it’s likely to do is piss them off and make them an even more angrier driver than they were in the first place. And that’s not going to do any of us any favours?
So at what point do we need to make someone retake their test. How bad do drivers need to be before we say they’re too bad? Do we need to wait until they’ve killed someone? Should we be able to nominate our fellow road users for a bit of extra training if we think they need it? Or should we leave it up to the filth to spot the bad drivers amongst us? Answers on the back of a postcard…
11 Responses
What I would like to see put in place.
Eye sight test at 65.
Pass that and it’s on to a hazard perception test.
Pass that and it’s a quick 20/30 minutes retest. Town driving, parking, 3 point turn, up on the motorway.
Nothing major, just an assessment to make sure your still capable which many/ the majority will be. However, the ones that clearly aren’t will be caught out. And the rest of us, safer for it.
Why the over 65’s.? The standards are poor across all age ranges for different reasons. The IAM and ROSPA could be used for compulsory 10 year assessments
But would you pass your bike test again?
I think I would do yeah. I teach CBT and I’m sitting my ROSPA retest in June. Fingers crossed 🙂
Well bloody said!
I firmly believe all drivers of every vehicle should be given a free “driving standards check “ every five years by the DVSA.
I know this isn’t actually practical so 10 years would do.
If you fail a driving check then compulsory training to meet standards would have to be paid for.
I am a full time HGV driver and every single day I see very poor judgment, lack of planning, not knowing speed limits etc etc etc.
I am also a part time bike instructor and am trying single handed to educate road users- but in a fun way!
Everyone should have to retake a driving test every 5 years
I think biggest issue is that some road users mainly cars as they are the highest percentage know how they should behave. They just don’t give a shit, they have a cavalier attitude to other peoples safety, see some anti bike, horse, van whatever comments on social media. And so they learn to pass a test and then a minority of them jump in a car/van lorry and yep sorry on a bike sometimes too. And drive like tools with no consideration till they cause a crash. No amount of training can stop someone being a w4nker sadly.
Cost me my leg. Featured on your final lockdown show. Driving standards are dropping drastically. Especially after lockdown, keep it sunny side up everyone ✊ ☠️ #theamputeebiker
Completely agree. ‘Didn’t see you’ should no longer be a valid excuse. If they can’t see me, they’re not looking properly and therefore are driving properly!
The training and assessment for cars in the uk is not enough really.
However making someone retake their test for one mistake is silly. People do make mistakes.
Had someone pull out on me very recently which took my bike down.
I’d like to see harsher punishment for people parking on blind bends and not cutting their hedges back so they can see out of their driveways.
I have for the past few weeks been out with my son on L plates while he practices for his test. He’s had about 12 lessons before I went out with him. I was surprised how low the standard is to pass the test these days. They literally are teaching them to pass the test. Not how to drive. They have been taught to not use above 3rd gear. Never been on a dual carriageway. Don’t use handbrake at junctions. No shoulder checks. No reverse around a corner. Parking forwards into a space.
It’s very different and I now know why I think everyone drives like crap.
I’ve got to take a assessments for loads of stuff at work to renew licences.
Can’t see why there shouldn’t be a 5 year assessment for driving licences.
A mornings assessment once every 5 years and especially after 70.
As a motorcyclist and cyclist if I hear a lorry behind me out cycling I’m happy because I know they’ll give vulnerable road users space (well they do round here) but, fuck me, 85 year old Ethel in her Nissan Micra will take my right knee cap off.