Eye Spy

To get their licence, drivers have to pass a stringent eye test, but subsequently some do not take regular tests – which could put their job, their life and the lives of others in danger

- Dan Parton

Visitors to the Commercial Vehicle Show at Birmingham’s NEC in April had the chance to take a free eye test – and it turned out to be something for which many participants were overdue.

Of those tested in the Vision Van – a collaboration between the Road Haulage Association and optician chain Vision Express – 81% were overdue an eye test, meaning they haven’t had one for more than two years, while 62% were told they needed a new prescription.

The Vision Van is part of an RHA initiative to highlight the importance of eye health in the haulage sector, and the results were worrying, says Colin Snape, deputy policy director at the RHA. “People didn’t realise how important eye health is,” he says.

Not tested by police

It is difficult to say how many accidents have occurred where eyesight is a contributing factor – it isn’t something that police test for at the scene of a collision, and in some cases it would be impossible to test for anyway.

But, as Heather Lunney, a solicitor from law firm Backhouse Jones, notes, estimates from the Royal College of Optometrists suggest 2-3% of drivers have vision below the minimum standard. In 2012, the RAS Insurance Group estimated that 2874 casualties had been caused by road accidents involving a driver with poor vision.

Again, how many of those were truck drivers isn’t known – but having substandard vision is obviously a risk to all those on the road.

When HGV drivers make an initial application for a licence, they have to pass an eye test that is more stringent than for a car driver. However, there is no obligation afterwards to have regular eye tests.