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Millions Driving Blind Through Vanity

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Blurry Vision DriversYou wouldn’t dream of driving with your windscreen covered up, but millions of drivers are doing essentially the same by getting behind the wheel without their glasses on. And, although sometimes this is because they’re forgetful or negligent, the most common reason is vanity.

According to a poll commissioned by the eye clinic Focus, one in eight motorists who need glasses to drive admit to regularly leaving them off. Under-44s are 15 times more likely to do this than over-55s, and nearly half of them say that vanity is the main reason.

What you’re risking

Quite apart from the danger of being killed or injured in an accident, drivers who handicap themselves by failing to wear their glasses risk prosecution. A driver involved in an accident will often be subject to a police sight-test on the spot, and driving wilfully with inadequate vision is an offence.

And it can get worse. If anyone is killed in the accident, you’re likely to be charged with causing death by dangerous driving, and a conviction will almost certainly lead to a prison sentence.

Even if you escape prosecution, your insurance company might not be as understanding. A requirement to wear glasses if you need them isn’t normally mentioned in an insurance policy, but, as Graeme Trudgill of the British Insurance Brokers’ Association puts it, “drivers have an obligation to take reasonable care to safeguard against damage to their vehicles. Not wearing glasses could be deemed as not taking reasonable care…”

What can you wear?

Besides standard lenses, what can you wear behind the wheel, and what’s inadvisable?

  • Contact lenses, bifocals and varifocals are fine, as long as they’re made to your prescription. In fact, bifocals or varifocals are recommended, as they make it easier if you have to glance down at a sat-nav or other instruments.
  • Variable tint sunglasses aren’t illegal, but they aren’t very safe to drive in. In most modern cars, UV light is filtered out by the windscreen, and you risk the lenses becoming too dark to see.
  • Google Glass is legal for driving — as long as you’re only using it as glasses. Using the tech while driving is almost certainly going to distract you, and you could be fined under the same laws as using a mobile.

Vanity, what vanity?

No amount of vanity should outweigh safety concerns, of course, but those one in eight drivers seem to be way behind on fashion anyway. With top designers including them as essential accessories and many celebrities proudly wearing them, glasses are no longer something to be ashamed of. Drivers who need them can be safe and fashionable at the same time.

The post Millions Driving Blind Through Vanity appeared first on iWearGlasses Blog.


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