AN ELDERLY man has thanked a charity for helping him with a battle he is having with renewing his driving licence.

James Ward, 81, of Tavistock, has been forced to make a 200-mile round trip for an eye test as required by the DVLA to renew his driving licence.

James says he has felt ‘frustrated’ and ‘let down’ by the DVLA after his licence expired in July this year and faces ‘obstacle after obstacle’ in trying to overcome what he calls red tape in trying to book an eye test including being expected to travel to south Devon and Somerset, even though he is not allowed to drive and cannot afford public transport.

His first attempt at having an eye test was at the DVLA approved Specsavers shop in Tavistock, but the machine specified as crucial for the test did not work, so he was allocated an alternative site at an independent opticians in Castle Carey. James asked for somewhere nearer and was offered Torbay Hospital, but that did not have the appropriate equipment.

In the end, after asking for his help of his son, who lives five hours’ car journey from Tavistock in Buckinghamshire, he accepted the Castle Cary appointment.

Having confirmed all the required testing equipment was available at Castle Cary, his son took him there on Wednesday, October 18. He now awaits the result. James, a retired carpenter, said: “I’ve got a clean licence after a lifetime of driving and all I’m asking for is a chance to drive again. But it seems so difficult. I haven’t been officially told by the DVLA that I can’t drive but it makes sense now that my licence is out of date since July, that I stop.

“So it doesn’t make sense that the DVLA expect me to travel to Castle Cary or Tobay Hospital for an eye test. It’s a long way to drive for anyone, let alone try and get by public transport from Tavistock to Somerset and Torquay.

“I told the DVLA it was too far for me to go. If it wasn’t for my son, who lives about four or five hours away in Buckinghamshire I wouldn’t be able to get to Castle Cary. Then he had to drive another two hours to take me, so he had to give up a day’s work. It wasn’t even even a big chain like Specsavers, but a small independent, so why can’t the DVLA organise something like that with all the opticians there are in Plymouth.

“I can’t understand why they don’t have contracts with a private hospital or another Specsavers in Plymouth, for instance. I even heard about about people from Cornwall being expected to have tests in Castle Cary.

“I can’t thank TASS enough for their support in this. One of their staff helped me with the phone calls and who to ring and what to say. They sat with me and went through the long torture by phone when they put you on hold or ask you to choose this, that and another option and play music for ever instead of talking to me.

“At my age I cannot walk too far and I need to go by bus to go shopping where I can afford, at Lidl. Otherwise, it’s very restrictive not having a car as I’m used to, when the bus services around Tavistock and to and from Plymouth, for instance, are not very frequent or later in the day.”

James, who had medication for his eyes after having treatment for cataracts and glaucoma, said: “I’m highlighting this because there must be other people who are in my position who are just putting up with the situation when the DVLA expect them to travel silly distances when they probably haven’t got their licences any more or can’t afford the travel.”

A spokesperson for the DVLA said: "There are a range of assessments available which are dependent upon an individual’s medical condition. "Drivers requiring a binocular Esterman field test are generally offered a choice of 4 stores that are within 25 miles for car/motorcycle drivers  and 50 miles for vocational drivers, however, if more specialised testing is required such as a Goldmann perimetry assessment, drivers may  be required to travel further to access them. "DVLA caseworkers will work with the driver to arrange the most convenient location and time for them and in exceptional circumstances  other assessment types are considered on a case by case basis."