One in three motorists is driving with eyesight below the legal standard even when advised not to do so, a survey shows. A third of optometrists have seen patients in the past month who have ignored advice and continued to drive with below-standard eyesight.
According to The Times newspaper, some 91 percent of eye healthcare specialists also believe that the sight requirements for a driving licence are insufficient because they allow people to drive without any further eye checks after passing their initial test.
An additional public poll shows that 30 per cent of road users have doubted whether their vision is adequate, yet have continued to drive.
A further 26 per cent say that they have delayed getting their eyes checked despite suspecting that their vision was deteriorating while 6 per cent admit to delaying a test for more than a year.
The survey by the Association of Optometrists (AOP) also found that only 40 per cent of people would stop driving if they were told that their vision, even with glasses or contact lenses, was below the legal standard for driving.
