Q: Can a person request that another driver be re-tested by the Oregon Department of Motor Vehicles for a driver’s license? If so, who can make the request?

A: If a driver appears to show a pattern of accidents or the inability to operate his vehicle, another driver can report the person to the DMV via a request for re-evaluation form. However, DMV spokesman David House said that right comes with several caveats.

“If we get a report that describes some very unsafe driving behaviors we will give the person 60 days to come in and retake the three DMV tests or they’ll be suspended,” House said. The three tests are vision, knowledge and driving.  “Anyone can fill it out, but you have to know the person you are reporting. You can’t just turn in a license plate.

He said the DMV has set these procedures in place in case someone else has been driving the vehicle or if a complainant is reporting another driver out of bad blood.

Also, the complainant must offer a description of unsafe driving behaviors included in the request and has to provide his name. His identity can be withheld from the driver, if the complainant wishes. But that information could be revealed if the suspension is challenged in court or in a DMV administrative hearing.

House said the DMV receives about 2,000 requests per year. About half come from law enforcement and the remainder are made by doctors, family members, DMV employees and the courts. More than half of the individuals reported do keep their driving privileges.

“Basically you have to be fair. Anyone who can pass these three safety tests .... is entitled to driving privileges. Even if they are reported, if they can pass those tests they can keep their license,” House said.

There are some people who let the suspension go through and some just come in to a DMV field office and exchange their license for an identity card.

“They figure maybe it’s time to stop driving,” House said.

Acceptable examples of unsafe driving and those who report it are as follows: If a police officer stops a person suspected of driving under the influence of intoxicants and finds that person is sober. Yet, the driver was unable to maintain his lane or went over a curb, “that’s a cause to have an officer reconsider testing,” House said.

Doctors are required to report severe and untreatable impairments to the DMV if they make the driver unsafe behind the wheel, House said. But, if a doctor has patient he is are “iffy” about, because the patient is  deteriorating cognitively or losing strength in his arms, a physician may report that to the DMV for re-testing.

“Probably the two most common are cognitive and vision,” House said, adding those are required impairments that must be reported to the DMV.

Friends, family members and neighbors also can turn in a request for re-test form.

“(They) may notice a neighbor who backs into a mailbox more than once or has frequent damage to (his) car. It needs to be something that is a pattern not something that just happens once.”

North Bend Police Department Capt. Ron Akers said his officers don’t make the request often but will if they make a traffic stop or investigate an accident where a driver appears to be experiencing physical or mental impairments that would affect his driving. In a year’s time there may be less than five complaints being submitted from his department, Akers said.

“It’s a safety factor for them and the other people on the highway,” Akers said. “The only times we will submit those is when we believe the person shouldn’t be behind the wheel of a vehicle in their current state.

“Sometimes people get to a point to where they’re not as cognizant to their surroundings and they tend to miss things where it causes a hazard when they are driving a vehicle. If they don’t recognize this on their own, then somebody has to step up and report it.”

To obtain a request for re-evaluation form, those interested can visit a local DMV field office or OregonDMV.com.

(I Want to Know is a regular feature of The World, offering readers a chance to anonymously ask questions and have reporters pursue answers. Those interested can send questions to The World newspaper, P.O. Box 1840, Coos Bay Ore. 97420; or by sending e-mail to news@theworld link.com.)