I am reminded of a highly experienced military and civil Flight Operations inspector for a well respected CAA advising me as a junior captain that visual approaches should never be accepted by a wide bodied aircraft.
At the time I thought him a wuss, as I was in my late thirties as a 747 captain flying international routes to half the world. I was at the top of my game and thought myself both confident and capable.
After another 5,000 hours on the 747 I realised he was right. Perhaps I am a slow learner. Thankfully I never stuffed up badly enough to get into Pprune, but it was close sometimes.
From my position now I would never accept a visual approach to anything other than my home base, and then only in near perfect conditions. Anything that reduces safety margins even by a few percent is incompatible with the expectations of the societal, professional and legal systems under which we now fly.
Why do we accept visuals?
Because ATC ask, and they are pressed for performance figures. (Some ATCs in the world are deducted salary if they do not get their performance targets). A pilot feels pressurised to accept what is assertively offered.
Because it is fun. It reminds us of why we became a pilot. We feel the satisfaction of a job well done, using our full skill set which was taught into us.
And because there is always a commercial pressure to get the job done in the shortest possible time. Sometimes this is more perceived than actual, but in certain airlines it is a job breaker.
Visual approaches on wide-bodies are for those who seek professional acceptance by their peers over reduced safety margins.
Go for it if you know and fully accept the risks. But you are out on a legal limb, and you must know the exact air laws under which you are flying, into the jurisdiction into which you are flying.