title: [Driving capacity of diabetics against the background of legal principles].
abstract: Within the conversion of the 2nd Council Directive on Driving Licences of the Council of the European Communities (91/439/EEC) into national law, changes became necessary to the Road Traffic Act (StVG) and a new Driving Licence Ordinance (FeV) was created which has been in force since 01.01.1999 (Federal Law Gazette, 1998, Part I No. 55, 26. August 1998). Both in Annex III of the EC Directive and in Annex 4 of the Driving Licence Ordinance, statements are made with regard to the driving capability of diabetics. Besides this legal basis for evaluating capacity to drive a motor vehicle, the appraisal guidelines (Begutachtungs-Leitlinien zur Kraftfahrereignung) established in commission of the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Housing are to be understood as a set of rules which are outside the framework of actual legal statute as such and which are intended to support assessors in making decisions in individual cases. When considering whether an appraisal of driving capacity has to take place, in particular a difference is made between the different classes of vehicle. For motor cycles and passenger cars (Classes A and B), it will also be the case in future that a medical examination will only be ordered if there is a specific reason. Apart from this, only a sight test is necessary, as has been the practice up to now. In the case of lorries and buses (Classes C and D) and the licence for transportation of passengers (on a commercial basis) there will be an initial appraisal, as has also been the case up to now, and there will also be repeat appraisals. This is new for Class C, where up to the present there has only been an initial appraisal. The basic principle which applies is that the driving licence authority has the duty to instigate appraisal of the driving capacity of an applicant for a driving licence or of the holder of a driving licence if there is justified doubt about the driving capacity of the person concerned.
authors.affiliation: Bundesanstalt für Strassenwesen, Bergisch Gladbach, Germany. becker@bast.de
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Becker
mesh_terms: D001333:Automobile Driver Examination / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D001334:Automobile Driving / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D005104:Expert Testimony / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D005858:Germany; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans
vernacular_title: Fahreignung bei Diabetikern vor dem Hintergrund rechtlicher Grundlagen.