Rally legends Colin McRae and Nicky Grist are urging motorists to follow their lead and sign up to the lifesaving NHS Organ Donor Register.
The award-winning duo, who are due to take part at Rally GB in Cardiff next month, have teamed up with UK Transplant on the eve of a massive mail campaign urging motorists to join the register.
Nine million drivers will receive a copy of the leaflet We’ve signed up have you? with their vehicle tax reminder this winter, and Colin and Nicky are encouraging everyone who gets a form to use it to pledge the gift of life.
Former World Rally Champion Colin McRae said: “Organ donation is one of the greatest gifts of all. It literally saves thousands of lives every year.
“But sadly not everybody who needs a transplant gets the chance to receive one. There’s a desperate shortage of donors and hundreds of people die each year while waiting.
“We’re not often given the opportunity to save lives but this leaflet does just that. I’ve joined the NHS Organ Donor Register and told my family my wishes for donation. I’d encourage all motorists who gets one of the leaflets this winter to do the same.”
Co-driver Nicky Grist, winner of 21 World Rally Championship events, has direct experience of the importance of donation. His brother-in-law died two years ago following a stroke and saved several lives through organ donation.
Nicky said: “We were all rocked by what happened. He was only 36 when he died and was a fit and athletic man. It was so unexpected and he had so much to give, but by donating his organs the family felt that in the loss of his life he could bring life to so many others. It helped us all by knowing that he helped so many other people in this way.
“I think the NHS Organ Donor Register is overlooked by people, because many still don’t know how vital and important it is. My wife already knows that if I die I wish for my organs to be donated to help as many people as they can. Hopefully, more people will do the same.”
Nine out of ten people in the UK support organ donation and approximately one in five people (13.8 million) have already added their names to the NHS Organ Donor Register. More than six million joined the register by ticking a box when applying for their driver’s licence.
UK Transplant Acting Communications Director Maxine Walter said: “We know that motorists are a kind-hearted group because so many have already signed up to give the gift of life using the tick box when they applied for their driver’s licence.
“For those who haven’t yet joined the register, perhaps because they haven’t needed to reapply for a licence for a while, this mailing offers another way of signing up.
“I hope people will take this opportunity to pledge the gift of life and tell their families of their wishes so that they are in no doubt should the time ever come.”
The winter mail-out of organ donor registration forms with DVLA vehicle tax reminders is a joint campaign with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.
* You can find out more about donation and join the NHS Organ Donor Register by telephoning 0845 60 60 400, visiting www.uktransplant.org.uk or picking up a leaflet at your local GP’s surgery.
