Is there an age limit for drivers? What Florida law says about teens and seniors

Does Florida have an age limit for driving?

The question comes up time to time, especially after crashes involving teens and senior citizens.

Here’s what to know about rules related to age:

Younger drivers in Florida

Learner’s permit: The state issues learner permits to drivers if they are at least 15 years old. A parental consent form is required for anyone under 18. To get a learner’s permit, a future driver must pass a traffic law exam and vision and hearing tests, according to Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. A learner’s license requires a licensed driver 21 or older to be the vehicle and also restricts driving to daylight hours for the first three months.

Driver’s license: The minimum age for a full driver’s license is 16. To get a license at that age, a driver is required to have had a learner’s permit for a year and pass a driving test, according to the Florida agency. There are some driving time restrictions in place until a licensed driver turns 18. The laws “allow teen drivers to safely gain driving experience under lower-risk conditions before obtaining full driving privileges,” according to the state Depasrtment of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

Older drivers in Florida

Age limits: The state doesn’t have an upper age limit for driving. But in 2004, Florida mandated that drivers 80 or older needed to pass a vision test and file a vision examination report when renewing a license. You pass and your license can be renewed, unless a doctor notes otherwise.

What does the law say about seniors driving?

▪ According to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, a Florida Class E driver’s license — a standard driver’s license for non-commercial vehicles — must be renewed every eight years for those who are 79 years old and younger. But at age 80, driver’s licenses must be renewed every six years.

▪ Drivers 80 or older and who aren’t eligible to renew their driver’s license online must pass a vision test, the state says. The test can be taken at a Florida driver’s license service center. There is no extra charge.

▪ Drivers can also ask their Florida-licensed medical doctor, osteopathic physician or an optometrist to administer a vision test. Once a customer passes the vision test, the driver or a doctor must submit a Mature Driver Vision Test form that is available from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. If the vision test reveals medical conditions that result in a referral to an eye specialist, such as a Florida-licensed ophthalmologist or an optometrist, a driver must submit a completed Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Report of Eye Exam form. On that form a physician can sign off on patients being safe to drive if they pass the visual test. But eye examiners can also sign the form recommending that a license be denied and can state why. The medical professional can also OK the patient to drive but only under certain specifications such as daytime only or only after passing a driving test or with special equipment on the car.

How to request an unsafe driver investigation in Florida

Sometimes the problem may go beyond visual and you may have to have a talk with your family member, friend or doctor. Sometimes you may have to reach out to the state.

AARP communications manager Dave Bruns says his organization was concerned about the issue as the organization noted that there were 825,000 drivers 80 or older and 112,000 drivers 90 or older registered in Florida.

“But we also think it’s unfair to say that it’s age alone that is an indicator of why you should be or not be behind a wheel,” he said. “It’s not so much age. It’s really about health conditions.”

Florida had the largest number of older drivers involved in fatal crashes at 767 compared to other states, according to a 2021 U.S. Department of Transportation report.

In 2020, about 7,500 adults 70 and older nationwide were killed in traffic crashes, and almost 200,000 were treated in the ER for crash injuries, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These figures translated to 20 older adults killed and almost 540 injured in crashes daily.

Sometimes age-related impairments are a factor and the driver may not be willing to give up their independence or recognize the time may have come.

The Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles “will accept information from any doctor, person, or agency representative who knows of a physical or mental condition that may affect an individual’s ability to drive safely,” according to Nolo, a nationwide firm that answers legal questions. These reports can be filed to the state by completing the department’s Medical Referral form.

Reports are kept confidential, but you must include a name, address and telephone number. Department investigators may interview family members, neighbors or the driver’s doctor, and may also require medical tests or written or road retests.