One in seven young drivers put themselves and their passengers in danger because of problems with their eyesight, it emerged today.
The shocking figure emerged following a poll of 2,000 motorists which found one in seven drivers under the age of 24 suffering from eyesight problems.
It also unearthed the alarming number of near-misses experienced by young drivers with around one in three recently coming close to a serious accident.
The research was commissioned by thinkaboutyoureyes.co.uk to mark the launch of a new winter driving campaign for Road Safety Week this week.
Optician Andy Hepworth said: ”It’s worrying to find the younger generations are struggling to see properly on the road and it makes you wonder what their vision will be like in years to come.
”We need to nip these bad habits in the bud now and get youngsters to take note of the importance of good eyesight.
”Drivers can make the road safer by getting their eyes tested at least every two years, even if they think their vision is fine, and immediately if they notice their vision deteriorating.”
More than 40 per cent of the drivers studied were required to wear glasses while driving yet one in ten road users admitted they don’t always wear them when behind the wheel.
A fifth of respondents admitted having difficulty reading the registration plate on the car in front of them.
Bad experiences as a passenger were also common with a quarter of the study genuinely having cause to worry about their driver’s vision when being given a lift.
In those cases, one in three people were so worried about their driver’s vision that they got out of the car.
