Rochdale MP Paul Waugh joins push for new laws after a pensioner with poor eyesight killed a woman in a crash
Rochdale’s MP is demanding changes to the law after a woman from Whitworth was killed by a driver who had serious sight problems but kept his licence by hiding his condition.
Paul Waugh is one of a group of cross-party MPs calling on the government to tighten rules around medical reporting after the tragic death of 75 year old Anne Ferguson in 2023.
Mrs Ferguson died after being struck by a car driven by 72 year old Vernon Law, who had been diagnosed with cataracts in both eyes just a month earlier. Despite this, he continued driving and lied to both an optician and the DVLA about his condition. A court later jailed him for four years.
Mr Waugh is supporting a national campaign led by Susan Rimaitas, whose mother and friend were both killed in a similar crash involving a driver with untreated eyesight problems in Southport in 2021. The man responsible had also failed to tell the DVLA about his condition.
Four separate deaths, including those of Mrs Ferguson, Marie Cunningham, Grace Foulds and 80 year old Peter Westwell, have been linked to drivers with severe visual impairments. All four inquests were overseen by Lancashire’s senior coroner, Dr James Adeley, who has now formally asked the Transport Secretary to review the current rules.
Dr Adeley said the existing system for checking whether drivers meet legal eyesight standards is “unsafe and unfit,” warning that people are dying because it is too easy to avoid detection.
“There is no proper mechanism to stop people who are not fit to drive from getting or keeping a licence,” he said.
At the moment, there is no law that forces opticians or other medical staff to tell the DVLA when a patient is unfit to drive. Instead, it is left to the patient to be honest, and many are not. There is also no joined-up system to share information between healthcare providers, police, and licensing authorities.
Campaigners want the law changed so that:
- Medical professionals must report dangerous eyesight problems to the DVLA
- A system is put in place to share those reports with the police
- Tighter checks are carried out to stop people from driving if they don’t meet the legal standard
Speaking in support, Mr Waugh said: “This was a completely avoidable death. It’s horrifying that someone with such poor eyesight could legally be on the road simply because they chose not to say anything. The system is broken and we must fix it.”
Mrs Rimaitas, whose mother was one of the victims, added: “The man who killed my mum ignored multiple warnings from doctors. But the real scandal is that the law didn’t stop him. There are probably thousands more like him out there. That’s terrifying.”
She said drivers are not required to prove they can see properly when renewing their licence and there are no regular checks unless someone reports a concern.
The MPs involved have now asked for a meeting with Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander and are urging ministers to act quickly before more lives are lost.
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