FAMILY MEDICINE® COLUMN
By John C. Wolf, D.O.
Associate Professor of Family Medicine®
Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine

[LOOK OUT FOR THOSE WILD OLDER DRIVERS]

Question: I recently received my car insurance bill and noticed it had gone up. My insurance agent said the price has increased since I am now 65, and that alone makes me a high-risk driver. I am a very careful driver, as are most of my friends. Are older drivers really "high risk?"

Answer: A person's age, by itself, has little to do with his or her ability to manage the complex tasks involved in driving. However, traffic accident statistics do show that certain age groups have greater problems managing these complex skills than others do.

I think everyone is aware that young drivers are more prone to accidents. Typically, they pay an increased premium until age 25 or so. New drivers of any age also pay more for several years, and new includes individuals who have been outside the USA for two years or more and then return.

Drivers of all ages make errors in judgment that ultimately result in accidents. Judgment error is responsible for most accidents involving young drivers. Drivers over 65 make judgment errors too, but more often their accidents are, in part, the result of specific health problems.

Two newly published studies show that those with decreased vision were more likely than similar people without vision problems to have been recently involved in an accident or to have recently received a ticket from the police. Vision was measured in these studies with a simple eye chart or more complex visual-perceptual testing. Restricted movement of the neck and falling within the past two years also made it more likely that a person would be involved in an accident.

The likelihood of having one or more of these health problems increases with age, and that is why your insurance rate has gone up. Insurance is a business based on statistics. The premiums we pay are set to cover the insurance company's costs for providing the desired coverage for a large number of similar individuals. Your good driving record may save you a few dollars on your premium, but the basic rate is based upon the predicted expenses for insuring those of your age and driving a vehicle like yours.

You might think that as a person develops infirmities, he or she would voluntarily stop driving. The statistics clearly show that this isn't so. Drivers 80 and older have accident death rates greater than that of teenagers! In addition to having this greater risk of death from an accident, they also have more accidents for each 100,000 miles driven.

So the answer to your question is that on a statistical basis, older citizens are high risk drivers. But, it is also true that most older drivers - and most teenagers - are quite careful and competent. Because state governments keep such careful records, it just takes a few bad experiences to give insurance companies the rationale to raise rates for all of those in your age group.

Family Medicine® is a weekly column. To submit questions, write to John C. Wolf, D.O., Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Grosvenor Hall, Athens, Ohio 45701.