Your Eyesight
It is a criminal offence to drive a motor vehicle if you cannot read a standard number plate (with glasses or corrective lenses if necessary) in good daylight from 20.5m (67 feet) or 20m (65 feet) where narrower characters 50 mm wide) are displayed. If you need glasses or corrective lenses to do this, you must wear them every time you drive. There are additional rules if you want to drive vehicles over 3.5 tonnes and minibus/buses.
For New Drivers - Your Eyesight Must Be At Least:
- 6/9 on the Snellen scale in the better eye and 6/12 on the Snellen scale in the other eye and (wearing glasses or contact lenses if you need them)
- 3/60 in each eye without glasses or contact lenses
- An optician will be able to tell you about this.
Drivers who held a licence before 1 January 1997 who do not meet these standards will need to check their licensing position with our Medical Section at DVLNI.
