Am I Correct in My Assertion?

That is a sad story and probably frightening for the person concerned. Having monocular vision is a notifiable condition to the DVLV, subject to a £1000 fine if not told. I wonder if it might depend whether it is a temporary or permanent loss of sight? To be on the safe side it would make sense to inform the insurance company but they would probably be guided by what the medical professionals said. When I had my hip replacement I was told I couldn't drive for six weeks so I informed the insurance company who seemed pretty relaxed about it and just said follow the medical advice. I am not so sure she is at less risk because she only drives 10 miles a week, I wonder if statistically she is at greater risk of having an accident than someone who drives a 200 miles a week who would probably be more confident? The sad fact is that its not always easy for older folk to get around without their own transport. Where we live we could probably manage as we have a good bus service within a 100 metres and plentiful good value taxi services, but that is often the exception rather than the rule?

David 

I think there is a lot we don’t know here in order to make any assumptions. Firstly, to what degree has sight been lost? Secondly, with the hospital involved I would suggest that a fully qualified ophthalmologist is leading the case and the advice given. In my experience you only need to inform the DVLA  if your sight does not meet the requirement below. The test given by ophthalmologists will determine this. Thirdly is the problem temporary or permanent?
“You must 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.”

The ophthalmologist can deem a person unfit to drive and the patient can contest this but then the DVLA will decide but that decision will be made on whether the minimum standards are met or not.
As far as notifying insurance companies as to whether or not you are visually impaired then that also is down to meeting the eye test standards too. However, if you have lost sight in one eye to such a degree that results in monocular vision then you will be advised and wise to inform your insurance company.

Mickysf, please let me clarify. As stated in my original post, the lady has totally lost the sight in one eye. Because of the sudden sight loss she went to her local optician (a well known company beginning with S) who directed her to the hospital. it was only the local optician who said she could still drive, not the hospital. To date she has been to one outpatient clinic who decided that she needed to be seen by an Opthalmic Consultant. Whether the condition is permanent or only temporary is not yet known as she has not yet seen the consultant and consequently does not know what treatment, if any, can be given. To date it is approximately six weeks since her vision was lost.

Hi John, just to clarify there can be a world of difference between clinical blindness and one’s own perception of blindness. I only wonder who made this diagnosis. I have had several eye issues and I take my advice from those specialists I mentioned previously, my optician advised me when I had a detached retina but my ophthalmologist had the final say. I don’t mean to undermine opticians, they do a good job with glasses etc. and identifying possible other issues and then directing us, through our doctors to others more qualified.
There is no legal requirement to notify one’s insurance but if advised to notify the DVLA by a specialist ophthalmologist then one would be unwise not to do so. A bleed behind the eye can be temporary and would not necessarily need to be communicated to an insurance company. I once had severe temporary sight loss and I decided not to drive for a few days although it actually took several weeks to completely return. In such instances it is the responsibility of the patient to make that call. As I said before, you should take the advice of those that know best.

Regarding the DVLA and such advice from a specialist then this may help.

https://www.college-optometrists.org/clinical-guidance/guidance/knowledge,-skills-and-performance/examining-patients-who-drive#Ifyouthinkapatientisunfittodrive

John

When your friend went to the Outpatients Department did they not give any advice/instruction on driving. Did she make them aware that she was still driving?

David

If she only got as far as the out patient receptionist then I’d suspect no official advice would be given. What I don’t understand is that an appointment to the ophthalmic clinic out patients in a hospital must come from your doctor, not an optician. Obviously in an emergency incident this can be determined by the doctor or registrar on duty but not a nurse or receptionist.

I would certainly inform the insurance company. Should there need to be a claim, they'll be looking at material facts and health. Any non disclosure will be ceased upon. Cynic moi?

I'm surprised that she wasn't sent to the emergency department for eyes immediately.

There was an anomaly with a check at my previous optician. She contacted our hospital, mid morning. I had a phone call from said eye A&E department about 2 hours later. Come in immediately. I casually said oh I'm glad the drops have worn off. I was told no driving by the admin person making the appointment! Nothing as serious as sight loss. We lived in Essex then, and it was within the last 5 years as OH not allowed to drive following a stroke.

I'd advise your friend to persue an eye clinic ASAP and change optician. 

I understand there's an Eye A&E at Peterboriugh too.

I 

Must be a difficult situation for the lady in question…..but…..safety considerations for herself, any passengers, any others on the road should be the prime determinant. In other words common sense. Sudden loss of sight in one eye surely must need some adaptation time, and certainly the RNIB advice is to give things time.

https://www.rnib.org.uk/your-eyes/eye-conditions-az/monocular-vision-sight-in-one-eye/#:~:text=Your%20unaffected%20eye%20must%20also,fully%20adapted%20to%20monocular%20vision.

 Doing the sensible thing until more is known/ treated, ok possibly not a good situation, but hopefully family friends could rally round.

Dont do the sensible thing, drive, cause or be involved in an accident🤷‍♀️ What might only be a temporary situation could lose license permanently. Which is the best long term scenario? 

Many moons ago I called at a clients house to drop my car off (he was a Motor Trader) and pick up a courtesy car.

He opened the door and said he couldn't take the car today as he was waiting for his daughter to arrive to take him to hospital as he had suddenly gone blind in one eye. I offered to drive him to A&E straightaway but he wanted to wait for his daughter as she would worry if he wasn't there.

I called in later on in the day. He didn't get to hospital in time and was now going to be permanently blind in that eye. Apparently there is/was something the medics could do that might have saved his sight but only in the first few hours after the blindness struck.

Two things struck me. One, he was intelligent enough not to drive himself  but not intelligent enough to have sought advice over the telephone with 999 and secondly if I had insisted on taking him then his sight might have been saved.

He didn't drive for some time afterwards and took and passed  an Advanced Driving Course to prove to insurers he was safe to drive with one eye.

Lesson - Don't mess around with emergencies. Phone the people who really know, like 999 or 111.

I cannot stress how important your point is Wherenext. This is exactly what happened to me with my detached retina. A sudden loss of sight in one eye, not darkness but total and absolute grey fuzziness. A phone call to the doctor resulted in their ‘suggestion’ I go immediately to A&E. From there the on duty registrar referred me immediately to the local hospital eye clinic to attend the following morning. The onus was upon me to take that advice, you are not ordered to do so but thankfully I took that advice and after several operations and procedures the sight in my eye was saved. Of course if the doctors consider you to be a driving danger due to eye issues they will advise the DVLC to suspend your license. Not following their advice or not notifying your insurers would be foolhardy in my opinion. I only returned to driving once they were happy with my recovery. Thankfully my sight in both eyes are as you would now expect of someone my age and my annual checks substantiate this. If in any doubt whatsoever get it checked immediately would be my mantra regarding eye health.