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Tips for Adult Children on How to Deal with Senior Driving Issues

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Driving safely requires a number of cognitive and physical skills. Even seniors who have impeccable driving records can encounter situations that lead to these skills being impaired. Read on for issues to consider when it's time to talk to your parent about his or her driving.

Acute Illness

After an acute illness, mental and/or physical capabilities may be reduced. Ask the doctor whether your parent is capable of driving. Talk to your parent as well, to see how he or she is feeling. Sometimes driving only needs to be ceased for a short period of time.

Alcohol or Drug Abuse

Abuse of any controlled substance impairs one's mind and body. If this applies to your parent, practice some tough love and make sure he or she stays off the road. See the recommended tactics at the end of this article.

Disorders and Illnesses that Cause Unpredictable Attacks

If your parent has experienced seizures, fainting, hypoglycemic attacks or falling asleep unpredictably, then you'll need to assess the situation to determine whether it is hazardous for him or her to drive. Talk to your parent's doctor about medications and possible side effects.

Prescription Medications

Some prescription medicines can cause drowsiness, dizziness, decreased coordination or cognition. Multiple drugs working in conjunction with each other can cause these types of symptoms as well.

Worsening Chronic Conditions

Diseases such as Parkinson's or dementia are known for worsening over time. It's ideal to begin a dialogue about driving soon after your loved one has been diagnosed. Make a plan for how and when driving should cease. Some diseases, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), can be trickier, because a person can be asymptomatic for months or even years, with no residual symptoms that impair driving. However, if your parent has been diagnosed with MS, exercise caution, since an exacerbation could occur at any time.

Prevention Is Key

Talk to your parent before you notice troubling behaviors. Approach the topic by asking how his or her parents (or other family members) decided to stop driving. This will also give you an idea about your parent's feelings on driving and independence.

What to Do When Asking Nicely Hasn't Worked

Unsafe drivers are liable to hurt themselves or someone else, and it is a matter of public safety to stop them. If you have asked, begged and pleaded with your parent to stop driving and he or she has flat-out refused, there are still some steps that you can take to make sure he or she doesn't get behind the wheel.

Notify the Patient's Doctor. Doctors should contact DMV if he or she believes a patient is driving unsafely due to a medical condition. However, be aware that many doctors don't report patients who pose a threat, in an effort to maintain the relationship. Also, even those who do report unsafe drivers must wait anywhere from three months to a year before DMV can investigate.

Notify DMV. For the most part, DMV will seriously consider a doctor's opinion on a patient's inability to safely operate a motor vehicle, but you can boost your efforts by reporting your loved one's unsafe driving yourself. Reports to DMV are confidential but not anonymous, which means that the record can be opened in the event of a court case.

Notify the Insurance Company. Oftentimes an insurance company will pull a reportedly unsafe driver's insurance. However, a lack of insurance won't keep some drivers off the road. Be aware that if you notify the driver's insurance company, you can create a situation where an unsafe driver is also uninsured.

Disable the Car. A disabled car can be repaired, and those who are able can buy another one, so this won't work in every scenario. Removing certain parts, such as the distributor cap, ignition fuse, fuel pump module, or spark plugs, will disable the car so it cannot be driven. Speak to a mechanic to find out which components can easily be removed from your loved one's car model.

Take Away the Car. If you have power of attorney, you should be able to take an unsafe driver's car away.

In the end, it comes down to self-limiting and whether an individual is capable of such and willing to do so. Driving is inexorably linked with independence, so if you plan on speaking to your parent about driving, don't forget to think through the implications to his or her daily life as well as the psychological effects on ego, independence and sense of self.

Posted in: Alzheimer's & Dementia Care, Communicating with Loved Ones, How to Care for Someone at Home, How-to's, Retirement & Life Care Communities, Senior Driving Issues

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