The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is to update its eye condition guidance but what is the eye test you need to pass?
The changes, which are expected within weeks, will require those with specific visual impairments to report their conditions to the driving authority.
After consulting with the SoS Medical Advisory Panel, the DVLA arrived at the current list in October 2022.
The guidance also dictated that if vision was a factor in an accident, a £1,000 fine and three points issued to the driver was to be expected but only if the driver had not notified the DVLA of the condition prior to the incident.
In more serious cases, a driving disqualification could have been on the cards, but this guidance seems set to be changed.
The reported changes after the Association of Optometrists (AOP) raised concerns over the list being so extensive that it could apply to almost every driver who receives a sight test.
DVLA eye conditions you currently have to declare
The DVLA has said that you must inform them if you have any of the following conditions (even if it's only in one eye).
Among the visual conditions that you need to report are Behçet’s disease, Coats’ disease, Detached retina, Glaucoma, Retinal tear or detachment and Vein occlusion.
The full list of notifiable conditions can be accessed on the UK government website.
How to report your eye condition to the DVLA
You can report your eye condition online via the government website.
For those that have a condition in one eye and another condition affecting the other eye, form V1 should be sent to DVLA.
What the driving eyesight rules are and the minimum legal standard is
Under the current driving eyesight rules, you do not need to declare your eye condition to the DVLA if you are short or long-sighted or colour-blind.
The driving authority has also clarified that if you’ve had surgery to correct short-sightedness and you meet the eyesight standards, you will not need to declare this either.
That being said, if you require contact lenses or glasses to meet the 'standards of vision for driving', you will need to wear them every time you get behind the wheel.
There are three tests that come under the DVLA's 'standards of vision for driving'.
These include the following:
- You must be able to read (with glasses or contact lenses, if necessary) a car number plate made after 1 September 2001 from 20 metres.
- You must also meet the minimum eyesight standard for driving by having a visual acuity of at least decimal 0.5 (6/12) measured on the Snellen scale (with glasses or contact lenses, if necessary) using both eyes together or, if you have sight in one eye only, in that eye.
- You must also have an adequate field of vision - your optician can tell you about this and do a test.
For more information and guidance, visit the UK government website.
What is the Snellen Scale?
The Snellen Scale tests a person's visual acuity which features several rows of letters that gradually gets smaller the further down the chart.
Normal visual acuity is called 6 / 6, which corresponds to the bottom or second bottom line of the chart, according to the Royal National Institute of Blind People ( RNIB)
Those who can only read the chart's top line would have a 6/60 result which means that they can see at 6 metres what someone with standard vision could see from 60 metres away.
In other words, on the Snellen Scale, the first number refers to the distance in metres from the chart when it is read.
Meanwhile, the second number refers to the number of lines that you can read on the chart.
The biggest letters, on the top line, correspond to 60.
As you read down the chart, the number gets smaller in line with the smaller letters.
A person with standard vision can read towards the bottom of the chart and would be considered as 6/6 vision.
As mentioned above, the minimum standard for driving is to have a visual acuity of at least decimal 0.5 which is the equivalent of 6/12 on the Snellen scale.
It's important to note that you must also have an adequate field of vision which your optician can tell you about.
