DVLA adds loads of eye conditions to the notifiable list
Discussion
It seems that at some point earlier this year DVLA added - without consultation - a list of conditions which are now notifiable. The Association of Optometrists appear to have responded with 'WTF?' and the list has been reduced from 113 conditions to 57.
https://www.gov.uk/eye-conditions-and-driving
https://www.aop.org.uk/ot/professional-support/hea...
I only found out last month when it was mentioned on a support forum for the condition I have. Completed the DVLA self-declaration form and received a DVLA letter a few weeks later saying thanks for letting us know, nothing more to do right now.
https://www.gov.uk/eye-conditions-and-driving
https://www.aop.org.uk/ot/professional-support/hea...
I only found out last month when it was mentioned on a support forum for the condition I have. Completed the DVLA self-declaration form and received a DVLA letter a few weeks later saying thanks for letting us know, nothing more to do right now.
Doctor here who has to deal with this stuff and I didn't know, so thanks for the heads up.
On an initial read I was astonished that most of these didn't already appear in the guidance as many of them cause very serious visual dysfunction. However, looking at the old fitness to drive guidelines for medical practitioners, a lot of the conditions on the list would have been covered by the effects they cause anyway. For example, "diplopia" was already a notifiable condition, though it isn't actually a disease, it's a symptom of one ("double vision"). Many of the listed conditions cause diplopia. Most of the rest can cause a person to fail to achieve the minimum standards of vision required to hold a license due to reducing visual acuity and/or field of vision, so again would be covered in most if not all relevant cases by the previous guidance. I've never heard of a handful of them, mind.
I imagine the list was created to remove doubt about whether something should or should not be notified, so I think it's useful from both a punter's and professional's perspective.
On an initial read I was astonished that most of these didn't already appear in the guidance as many of them cause very serious visual dysfunction. However, looking at the old fitness to drive guidelines for medical practitioners, a lot of the conditions on the list would have been covered by the effects they cause anyway. For example, "diplopia" was already a notifiable condition, though it isn't actually a disease, it's a symptom of one ("double vision"). Many of the listed conditions cause diplopia. Most of the rest can cause a person to fail to achieve the minimum standards of vision required to hold a license due to reducing visual acuity and/or field of vision, so again would be covered in most if not all relevant cases by the previous guidance. I've never heard of a handful of them, mind.
I imagine the list was created to remove doubt about whether something should or should not be notified, so I think it's useful from both a punter's and professional's perspective.
Jonny Wishbone said:
I imagine the list was created to remove doubt about whether something should or should not be notified, so I think it's useful from both a punter's and professional's perspective.
Agreed. I have Keratoconus and its effect can range from legally blind to the mildest of acuity loss, makes it clear that I do have to notify.Just a bit surprised by the lack of publicity for the change, I was in theory on the hook for an up to £1000 fine due to ignorance of the change.
QuartzDad said:
Agreed. I have Keratoconus and its effect can range from legally blind to the mildest of acuity loss, makes it clear that I do have to notify.
Oddly (until you think about it) if you are legally blind in one eye you don't (at least, not for the blindness). The advice then is not to drive until you have adjusted to being monocular. Presumably blindness in one eye is less visually confusing than one eye giving you duff information.Like many other things, they have backtracked on it.
https://www.aop.org.uk/our-voice/media-centre/pres...
https://www.aop.org.uk/our-voice/media-centre/pres...
donkmeister said:
Presumably blindness in one eye is less visually confusing than one eye giving you duff information.
It’s amazing how the brain copes, if I don’t wear my contacts then I struggle to tell how many fingers I’m holding up… but if I wear them in just one eye then I have 90%+ of the capabilities off my binocular vision. Spooky.Plymo said:
The full list still remains for bus and lorry licences though, including things like a Chalazion (blocked eyelash oil gland), Styes, and Conjunctivitis!
What is a notifiable list? I had conjunctavitis as part of covid which lasted all of a day and a half, hypothetically if I had been a lorry driver would I have had to tell DVLA and be banned for a few months while they investigated?No wonder everyone ignores them.
Somewhatfoolish said:
Plymo said:
The full list still remains for bus and lorry licences though, including things like a Chalazion (blocked eyelash oil gland), Styes, and Conjunctivitis!
What is a notifiable list? I had conjunctavitis as part of covid which lasted all of a day and a half, hypothetically if I had been a lorry driver would I have had to tell DVLA and be banned for a few months while they investigated?No wonder everyone ignores them.
I had a Chalazion for nearly a year (but I'm not a lorry driver!) it caused me the sum total of Zero problems until it went away by itself.
You're right about people ignoring it, but really rules that are ridiculous to comply with and routinely ignored should be scrapped. Otherwise it catches out the occasional unlucky person who probably poses no risk, while those with serious issues carry on unnoticed.
And of course you inevitably get punished for doing the right thing as the DVLA are so slow!
Plymo said:
Somewhatfoolish said:
Plymo said:
The full list still remains for bus and lorry licences though, including things like a Chalazion (blocked eyelash oil gland), Styes, and Conjunctivitis!
What is a notifiable list? I had conjunctavitis as part of covid which lasted all of a day and a half, hypothetically if I had been a lorry driver would I have had to tell DVLA and be banned for a few months while they investigated?No wonder everyone ignores them.
I had a Chalazion for nearly a year (but I'm not a lorry driver!) it caused me the sum total of Zero problems until it went away by itself.
You're right about people ignoring it, but really rules that are ridiculous to comply with and routinely ignored should be scrapped. Otherwise it catches out the occasional unlucky person who probably poses no risk, while those with serious issues carry on unnoticed.
And of course you inevitably get punished for doing the right thing as the DVLA are so slow!
What a load of nonsense. I am not surprised of course.
How do you know you have one of these conditions and not just less good eyesight than you used to have. Presumably most of these have some obvious effects.
I'm 70 and my night vision isn't what it was. It works well enough still but for all I know, I might have a problem which should be notified.
Day time vision is still better than 20/20 in case you were wondering....
I'm 70 and my night vision isn't what it was. It works well enough still but for all I know, I might have a problem which should be notified.
Day time vision is still better than 20/20 in case you were wondering....
Somewhatfoolish said:
"Floaters" is a condition???? Literally everyone has those.
What a load of nonsense. I am not surprised of course.
There’s a difference between the occasional floater that everybody gets versus pathological floaters due to, for example, a retinal detachment. The difference would be obvious to most as the sudden onset of a large hail of floaters in one eye.What a load of nonsense. I am not surprised of course.
I agree it’s not especially helpful to simply list “floaters” on that site - which is intended for those with a group 2 license - without further context.
Edited by Jonny Wishbone on Saturday 29th October 10:34
rlw said:
How do you know you have one of these conditions and not just less good eyesight than you used to have. Presumably most of these have some obvious effects.
I'm 70 and my night vision isn't what it was. It works well enough still but for all I know, I might have a problem which should be notified.
Day time vision is still better than 20/20 in case you were wondering....
I'm slightly older than you and have worn glasses for about 15 years, previously having had excellent vision.I'm 70 and my night vision isn't what it was. It works well enough still but for all I know, I might have a problem which should be notified.
Day time vision is still better than 20/20 in case you were wondering....
About a of year ago found that my night vision wasn't as good as I would like so went to optician to get new lenses. Optician did a proper check and found that I had burst a vein in the back of one eye (due to high blood pressure). This led to a hospital appointment where it was discovered that I also had Atrial Fibrilation (irregular heartbeat) and am now on a waiting list for a pacemaker, which is also DVLA notifiable.
All in all I feel lucky that I took the decision to get checked out.
Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff