In the next 20 years, the population of people 

age 65 and older is expected to reach 70 

million. Many of these will be drivers. In fact, 

right now, there are about 30 million licensed 

drivers age 65 or older.

People under age 75 have relatively low crash 

involvement. However, after age 75, this 

changes because these drivers may have 

health conditions or take medications that 

negatively affect their driving abilities, and 

this can put them and other road users at risk. 

These drivers may not be aware of these 

changes, or they may not be willing to admit 

them – to themselves or to others – including 

family members. Or in the case of people with 

cognitive impairments like dementia; they 

don’t necessarily have the insight to recognize 

poor performance.

Many family members or caregivers wonder 

what they should do if they think a loved 

one’s driving skills have diminished. And 

that’s the dilemma. Family members don’t 

know how to assess their loved one’s driving 

abilities. They dread approaching an older 

loved one to discuss whether he or she needs 

to modify his or her driving habits or even 

stop driving.

However, older drivers and their loved ones 

and caregivers need to take a realistic, 

ongoing inventory of the older driver’s skills 

and openly discuss them. Family members 

need to remember one very important thing: 

many older drivers look at driving as a form 

of independence. Bringing up the subject of 

their driving abilities can make some drivers 

defensive, angry, hurt, or withdrawn. Be 

prepared with observations and questions, 

listen with an open mind, and be prepared to 

offer possible transportation alternatives. If 

you answer “yes” to any of the following 

questions, you might need to talk about 

driving with an older driver:

• Does he or she get lost on routes that 

should be familiar? 

• Have you noticed new dents, scratches, or 

other damage to his or her vehicle? 

• Has he or she been warned by a police 

officer, about poor driving performance, 

or received a ticket for a driving violation

• Has he or she experienced a near miss or 

crash recently? 

• Has his or her doctor advised him or her 

to limit or stop driving due to a health 

reason?

• Is he or she overwhelmed by signs, 

signals, road markings, and everything 

else he or she needs to focus on when 

driving?

• Does he or she take any medication that 

might affect his or her capacity to drive 

safely? 

• Does he or she stop inappropriately and/or 

drive too slowly, preventing the safe flow 

of traffic? 

• Does he or she suffer from Alzheimer’s 

 disease, dementia, glaucoma, cataracts, 

A Talk With An Elder Driver
 arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, 

 or other illnesses that may affect his or 

 her driving skills? 

If you answered “yes” to any of the previous 

questions about an older driver, it is important 

to have caring, respectful, and nonconfrontational conversations about his or her 

safety, as well as the safety of others on the 

road. Show genuine concern and 

understanding, and offer viable alternatives 

that will not injure the older driver’s selfrespect and sense of independence. You might 

also consider taking a ride with an older 

driver to observe his or her driving skills, or 

encourage him or her to get a vision and 

hearing evaluation, or to enroll in an older 

driver safety class. You can also discuss your 

concerns with your loved one’s physician, and 

ask for recommendations. 

The good news is that depending on the 

severity of the problem, older drivers may be 

able to adjust their driving habits to increase 

their safety. For example, they may limit 

driving to daylight hours and good weather, 

or avoid highways and high traffic areas. 

____________________________________

Information from National Highway Traffic 

Safety Administration.

For more information about ACL

U.S. Department of Health and Human 

Services, Administration for Community 

Living, Washington DC 20201

Phone: (202) 619 – 0724

Fax: (202) 357 – 3555

Email: ACLinfo@acl.hhs.gov

Web: http://www.aoa.gov