The Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO) is backing the UK’s Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency’s (DVLA) Number Plate Test campaign, highlighting that drivers must be able to read a numberplate from 20 metres away to drive safely.  

A DVLA survey of 1,623 UK motorists carried out earlier this year found that just 48.5% of drivers were aware of this essential eyesight requirement. Nearly 20% thought it was just 15 metres required, while 6% didn’t know how many metres away they needed to be.  

The 20-metre distance test (roughly the same as five car lengths) is an easy way for drivers to regularly self-check their eyesight and be reminded to have their eyes tested at least every two years or as soon as they notice any changes to their vision.  

“We fully support the DVLA’s numberplate test campaign, which raises awareness of the importance for people, as well as those that drive, to attend for regular eye checks,” said Jo Holmes, ABDO president. “Patients who require spectacles to enable them to drive should be dispensed spectacles by a dispensing optician to ensure they are fit for purpose. This is why ABDO is pushing for the provision of spectacles to aid sight to drive be included as a protected function in relation to regulation reform throughout the UK.”