If you are seeing dents, dings, scratches and other marks on the car that the senior drives, it is time to take the hard step of taking the driver license away from the senior. If you are unsure of the ability of the senior to drive, take a short trip with them in the car. This is the quickest and most effective method to assess driving safety. If you are afraid of riding with your family member, they should not be on the road and are a hazard to not only themselves, but to all other drivers as well. Ours is a mobile society that is dependent on automobiles for independence. Removing driving privileges is a blow to the psyche as well as the life of the senior. Driving is a multi-tasking job and seniors are not good at this. Seniors often feel that if they pass the driving test, they are safe drivers. This Is not necessarily so and the family who allows the senior who is unsafe is risking their lives and the lives of others.
Ask someone else to have the difficult conversation about taking away driving privileges. This can be a healthcare provider or a consultant who works with seniors. Having the police on site during the conversation may or may not useful depending of the situation. The removal of the driving privilege can drive a wedge between parents and children. An outsider can deliver this message without fear of destroying a parent-child relationship. The outsider is also more open to the needs of both sides of the issue because they do not have the life-long baggage that we have as family members. Seniors often will listen to an expert or consultant more openly than their own family.