April is National Car Care Month, and if you and your senior haven’t taken some time to talk about cars, driving, and car care, now is the time to do it. There are a lot of changes that your senior’s brain and body go through as she ages, and her ability to drive might not be able to withstand those changes as well as she might hope. These tips can help you cover all the bases.
Make Sure Maintenance Tasks Are Caught Up
A properly maintained car is a much safer car for your senior to be driving. It can be tough to keep up with all of the tiny maintenance issues, though. Check to see if your senior’s car is up to date with everything that it needs and work out a solution that helps her car to be as safe as possible for now.
Look into Insurance Changes that Might Be Helpful
It’s possible that your elderly family member may have different insurance needs now for her car than she used to have. If it’s been a while since she looked into that, you may want to double check and see if there are any changes that would make her insurance work better for her. There could be other discounts she’s eligible for, especially if she doesn’t drive her car often.
Consider a Defensive Driving Class
Older adults often benefit from a defensive driving course. Sometimes laws change and if your elderly family member isn’t actively keeping up with all of that, she might not realize the new requirements on the road. Plus, a defensive driving class will help her to prioritize safety while she’s on the road.
Evaluate Whether Driving Is Still Right for Your Senior
In some cases, you and your senior might need to have a difficult talk about whether she should even be driving any longer. Finding alternatives to her being behind the wheel, like having Senior Home Care at home available for transportation, can make such a huge difference for her. Home care providers can help your elderly family member to get where she needs to go without having to worry or be nervous about how she’s going to do so.
Talk to Your Senior about What Can Make Car Care Easier for Her
It’s also important to talk with your senior about what might help keep her car in the best possible condition, especially if she’s not willing to give her car up. Helping her to remember maintenance appointments might be what she needs, for instance. But if the easiest part of car maintenance might be for her to leave the driving behind, that’s perfectly valid, too.
Senior Home Care at home is a terrific option for your elderly family member if you’re concerned about her driving. Instead of making their help mandatory, you might want to consider giving your senior the option of driving or having help. When she’s not feeling pushed into one option, she may be more willing to go the safest route possible.
