Last year Grey Power strongly lobbied New Zealand Transport Association for a ruling on the mandatory use of cognitive tests to determine if seniors should have their licences renewed.
Our desk research indicated that the use of cognitive tests to pass or fail a senior was not evidence-based. As a result, NZTA commissioned a clinical literature review on the value of cognitive tests in predicting seniors driving ability.
Unfortunately, the delivery of the final report before the end of 2025 was not achieved and as Grey Power magazine went to print NZTA was still waiting for a final version.
On December 23, 2o25, the latest version of the report was shared with stakeholders including Grey Power. A draft finding was that: “Current evidence is mixed on the utility of off-road cognitive assessment for driving performance among ‘healthy’ older adults.
“Even amongst those with mild to moderate dementia, cognitive tests are poor predictors of driving ability.”
This research is likely to cause some consternation for Ministry of Health and College of GPs as to how best advise GPs on the role, if any, of cognitive tests in deciding whether a senior has their licence renewed.
The Federation awaits outcomes of this internal debate and to the imminent issuing of clear guidelines to GPs which will ensure that mandatory use of cognitive tests ceases, and that these tests alone are not sufficient to fail a senior having their licence renewed.
– GP Vice President David Marshall
