Perhaps you’ve seen the signs with your parent or spouse that their ability to drive isn’t what it once was. You wonder if it’s time to have the talk that it might be time to stop driving.
But just what are the signs? According to the American Association of Retired Persons, or AARP, these are some of the signals that a senior’s driving ability has become diminished.
- Becoming distracted while driving
- Decreasing confidence in driving abilities
- Having a delayed response on the road
- Experiencing difficulty staying in the proper lane
- Hitting curbs when trying back up or turn right
- Driving at the improper speed for the road
- Scraping the car on the garage or other objects
- Experiencing worrisome close calls
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reported that in 2018, nearly 5,000 people in the United States ages 70 or older died in accidents. That does not include grandchildren who might have been riding in the car with them and were killed or pedestrians or people in other cars in North Carolina who might have been injured or killed in a crash.
The conversation you eventually will need to have with your loved one about putting an end to their days of driving isn’t an easy one. It likely will signal to them the loss of their independence and the realities that they no longer can do the things they once enjoyed. However, if you see the signs pointed out by AARP, that time could be now.
