Clipped wing mirror sparks debate over the ‘dangers’ of elderly drivers
Published: 14 May 2010
by PETER GRUNER
HE is the man whose car wing mirror was clipped by Islington historian Mary Cosh while she driving home at night, resulting in her being chased by a police patrol car with siren blaring.
But heating and plumbing engineer, Efremi Panayiotis, said he wasn’t in the least worried about his damaged wing mirror adding: “You would have thought the police would have had better things to do.”
The incident has meant that Ms Cosh – who is in her 80s – has to retake her driving test and sparked a hot debate.
Two readers have written to the Islington Tribune supporting the idea for people having to retake tests after they turn 80 years old.
As reported last week, partially disabled Ms Cosh was returning from an evening meeting at 10.30pm in her Nissan when she clipped the wing mirror of a parked car in Lofting Road, Barnsbury, close to where she lives.
She was then tailed by a passing police patrol car with siren blaring. She was accused of not stopping and reporting the incident to the driver of the other vehicle and driving “erratically”.
Ms Cosh, who has a disabled badge following knee and hip operations, argued that she didn’t stop because it was dark and the narrowness of the road made it difficult to park.
She has now been ordered by the DVLA, following a report by the police, to take her driving test again next month. Should she fail she faces becoming virtually housebound or reliant on expensive mini cabs. Ms Cosh also has to fork out hundreds for driving lessons.
Mr Panayiotis, 59, said: “It was only the wing mirror that she clipped. I haven’t had it repaired yet because I’ve not been well. It will cost about £100 to repair, which is not hugely expensive. I’m still able to use it.
“It was very late and the officer knocked on my door and told me what happened.
“The lady phoned me several times afterwards. She was very apologetic. But I think making her retake her driving test is a bit extreme.”
Mary Pachnos, from EC1, writes in our letters page: “Mary Cosh asks what she has done. She has illustrated precisely why older drivers should be re-tested.
“Someone who lacks spatial awareness and has a physical disability that could easily affect reflexes is a potential hazard on the road.
“So what if she has driven for fifty years? She is now in her 80s. Driving is not an entitlement. Next time it may be a child and not a wing mirror.”
But Derek Sawyer, chairman of the Islington Community Safety Board, which includes representatives from the police, said that while he couldn’t comment on the case, he had some sympathy for Ms Cosh.
He added: “In general I think we have got to be careful in our society in assuming that older people are worse drivers than the young.
“The facts show younger people sadly have more accidents in their vehicles.
“We live in a society where we shouldn’t have assumptions about people because of their appearance or age.
“Many older drivers are very safe, as the statistics show. We should be very careful not to stigmatise old people as bad drivers.”
He suggested that an independent assessor could look at the driving abilities of elderly people whose driving skills are under question.
“It might be preferable to making old people retake the driving test, which has changed a lot since it was first introduced,” he added.