Can You Drive if You Have Dementia?

Many people diagnosed with dementia think that this is the end of their driving. At Caddick Davies Solicitors, we can inform you that that is not always the case. Can you drive if you have dementia? It may well be possible, but it would be wise to seek the guidance of motoring legal experts on how to protect or re-gain your licence.

Finding a way to keep your driving licence, after being diagnosed with dementia, is a key process for many, especially in situations when driving is very important for both work and family life. It makes sense to seek the expertise of motoring solicitors, who understand that motoring clients need the best legal advice and representation for their specific case.

Our legal team at Caddick Davies focus solely on motoring law, and have assisted many clients to keep their licences after being diagnosed with medical conditions, including dementia.

How do you find help with keeping your licence after dementia?

Contact Caddick Davies and we will be able to approach your case from the legal point of view, while we work together with your General Practitioner to ascertain if you are still fit to drive.

Please understand that, since driving is a complicated task, one that requires a combination of complex split-second thought processes as well as visual and hearing sensory and manual skills, it is important that you undergo an assessment to see if you can drive with dementia.

So, can you drive with dementia? The answer to this question is determined by the exact nature of your condition. To be able to drive safely you must combine a range of mental skills such as:

• Concentration and attention: Focus needed to read the road while shifting between multiple tasks while driving
• Visuo-spatial skills: To maintain the right speed and distance while the vehicle is in the right position in the road
• Problem-solving skills: Ability to respond to diversions, obstacles or other incidents in the road
• Reaction and processing skills: Capacity to respond quickly to avoid an accident
• Judgement and decision-making skills: To be able to interpret and anticipate what other road users are doing

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If you have the early stages of dementia, but believe that you still possess the above skills, you might keep your driving licence if the DVLA assesses the medical details from your GP and finds you fit to drive. While dementia leads to memory loss, it may be that due to extensive experience in driving, you are still a highly capable driver for some time.

If you get your licence revoked due to dementia, Caddick Davies’ team of motoring solicitors may be able to help you to keep driving. Contact us by phone on 0151 280 3346, use our website to email us, or request a callback and we’ll contact you at an appropriate time.

Our motoring solicitors at Caddick Davies are equipped to make written representations to the DVLA to request a reinstatement of your licence. This will involve sending your medical records to the DVLA, who then have a medical panel evaluate your case and consider whether they can reinstate your licence.

At Caddick Davies Solicitors, we offer high-quality and reliable medical revocation solicitors to enable motorists around the UK to continue driving if their medical circumstances allow. Get in touch today to find out more.

Dementia and Driving

A diagnosis of dementia can be scary and life-altering. Dementia comes with the loss of a lot of independence, but that does not always mean losing your licence immediately. Studies have shown that a third of people with dementia still drive safely.

If you have received a dementia diagnosis and have concerns about what dementia might mean for you and your driving, we have put together a short guide to driving with dementia to help you figure things out.