Dementia and driving

Dementia is a brain condition that can affect your:

• thinking
• behaviour
• memory
• mood
• ability to perform everyday tasks

There are many types of dementia, including:

• Alzheimer's disease
• vascular dementia
• frontotemporal dementia
• Lewy body dementia

Symptoms of dementia usually appear in people over 65 years of age. Dementia can also affect people aged in their 40s and 50s — this is called younger onset dementia. While dementia is more common in older people, it is not a normal sign of ageing.

Dementia can affect your driving ability in many ways.

Dementia can make driving unsafe because it affects your:

• sense of direction
• hand-eye coordination
• ability to judge distances between your car and other objects
• ability to judge the speed of other cars
• hand-eye coordination
• reaction time

Being diagnosed with dementia does not mean that you must stop driving straight away. But as the disease progresses, you will eventually need to stop driving. This is for your safety and the safety of others.

If you have dementia, you may notice an increase in driving errors, such as:

• driving slowly
• mixing up the brake and the accelerator
• car accidents and near misses
• becoming lost on short trips
• confusing left and right
• having difficulty using maps
• missing things in your peripheral vision

If you have dementia, you are required by law to notify your local licensing authority. If you don't tell the licensing authority, you can be charged with driving offences.

You also need to tell your car insurance company.

If you are living with dementia and want to keep driving, you will need a medical assessment. If it is safe for you to drive, authorities will give you a conditional licence. In some cases, you can get a restricted licence that allows you to drive for short distances only.

You will need a reassessment every 12 months.

Driving laws for people living with dementia are different in each state and territory. Follow the instructions given by your local licensing authority.

It's time to stop driving if:

• you are worried about the safety of your driving — your driving skills will get worse with time
• your doctor advises you to stop driving
• your state or territory driver licensing authority indicates you are not eligible to drive
  

Regular check-ups can help you keep track of your condition and whether it's safe to drive.

The Dementia and Driving: A Decision Aid (Opens in new tab) by the University of Wollongong aims to support people living with dementia and their family members with decisions about driving. It is available in different languages.

Stopping driving is hard, but there are alternatives. These include:

• using public transport, taxis or ride sharing
• walking short distances
• asking family or friends for a lift
• using home delivery services for food, medicines and library books

It can be hard to talk about driving with someone who is living with dementia. They might see it as their right or as something they can do automatically.

They might see their inability to drive as a big loss in their independence.

Here are some tips for having a conversation about their driving:

• Start discussions soon after diagnosis.
• Have the conversation when everyone is calm and approach the topic in a respectful manner.
• Have short and frequent conversations.
• Try to normalise it — everyone will need to stop driving at some point.
• Acknowledge that giving up driving is hard.
• Focus on the alternative options.

It's best not to:

• have these conversations after a driving incident
• hide their car keys
• take away their licence

The Dementia Australia website (Opens in new tab) provides information and resources about dementia and driving (Opens in new tab). You can also call the National Dementia Helpline (Opens in new tab) on 1800 100 500.

Read more about the legal requirements of driving if you have dementia (Opens in new tab) from Austroads (Opens in new tab).

Licensing authorities for each state and territory:

• Australian Capital Territory (Opens in new tab)
• New South Wales (Opens in new tab)
• Northern Territory (Opens in new tab)
• Queensland (Opens in new tab)
• South Australia (Opens in new tab)
• Tasmania (Opens in new tab)
• Victoria (Opens in new tab)
• Western Australia (Opens in new tab)

You can also call the healthdirect helpline on 1800 022 222 (known as NURSE-ON-CALL in Victoria). A registered nurse is available to speak with you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.