Howlong's Kathleen Logie forced to play waiting game for licence test after COVID backlog

Kathleen Logie turned 85 in August and was required to be assessed by Service NSW in Corowa to deem if she was fit to be behind the wheel.

However, as COVID infections began to ramp up across the region, Mrs Logie's appointment was cancelled.

She was told a new booking would be made for her, but was taken by surprise when a letter arrived in September to say her licence was suspended as she hadn't completed the test.

Mrs Logie was then granted a three-month extension to take the test in December, but when a time still hadn't been made available, she was placed on a restricted licence of five kilometres from her home.

"I've held my licence for 66 years and I've never had an accident," she said.

"I've done a lot of driving. My husband was sick and I would drive him to various appointments.

"I was a bit cheesed off because it's not my fault that I'm not able to drive.

"I have my medical every year with the doctor and everything was fine to go ahead with the test, but I guess the pandemic was the culprit.

"If everything was okay on that front I would have had it and I was pretty confident I would have passed.

"You have to be tested when you're 85 so it would have been my first one."

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The five-kilometre radius would have prevented Mrs Logie from being able to travel to Corowa for medical and dental appointments.

"I can drive in Albury, but I don't go that way very often," she said.

"I mainly only go to the doctor, dentist and Woolworths in Corowa.

"I was going to get some cherries at Chiltern the other day, but I couldn't do that."

However, Mrs Logie was relieved to receive a call from Service NSW last week to finally lock in a time for a test in January and her licence restrictions were eased to allow her to drive beyond Howlong for appointments.

But she was worried how many others may have been caught up in the same situation.

"Service NSW apologises to Mrs Logie for any inconvenience and has reached out to rebook her for the next available driver test and organise a modified licence to enable her to drive to Corowa," a Service NSW spokesperson said.

"Service NSW is experiencing high demand for driver testing due to the impact of COVID-19 restrictions and is working as quickly as possible to clear the backlog."

Elderly drivers or motorists who require testing for medical reasons are asked to contact Service NSW on 13 77 88 to have a driver test prioritised.

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