Motorists in Moray who are either elderly or suffering from acute medical conditions could soon be forced off the roads if an idea being considered by Police Scotland comes to fruition.
It has been revealed that senior Police Scotland officers are looking at a clamp-down on motorists they claim are ‘unfit’ to drive because of their age or those who suffer from a host of medical conditions such as Diabetes.
They insist that roads would be made safer if such drivers were forced to surrender their licences – despite statistics that show proportionally fewer accidents involved older drivers than those caused by less experienced motorists.
The proposals came to light in a presentation in Aberdeenshire by Chief Inspector Elaine Logue, who said that the “innovative” approach under discussion would see police officers working with Grampian NHS in identifying motorists who they believe are unfit to drive.
Chief Inspector Logue said: “A lot of people killed on our roads are down to driver error or unfitness to drive – this may be down to medical issues.”
While the idea is being backed by road safety group Brake, Age Concern insist it would be wrong to target older drivers. A spokeswoman for the charity said: “Ability, not age, needs to be the foundation for road safety interventions that affect people in later life.”
Motorists are currently asked to inform the DVLA if they suffer from conditions such as diabetes, epilepsy or glaucoma and are asked to surrender their licence if doctors believe it is no longer safe for them to drive.
Account is also taken by insurers when such motorists apply for vehicle insurance cover.