Employers’ duty of care for work-related driving
20 March 2018
20 March 2018
According to a recent survey, every day, more than 150 vehicles which are being driven on company business are involved in a crash.
Headlines have been filled with information regarding a crash on the M1 in which the lorry driver was not only over the drink-drive limit but his driving licence has been revoked at the time of the accident.
Another serious crash happened a year prior to this, where another lorry driver was paying attention to his mobile phone rather than the road.
Employers should be aware of steps that need to be taken to minimise the risk of road traffic accidents of their staff in a work-related capacity.
Companies are under a duty of care to staff who drive company owned, leased, or hired vehicles, as well as their own when conducting business which is governed by the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. Vehicles that are used for work have to conform to road traffic law, be safe, properly maintained and fit for purpose. Breach of this duty can result in considerable fines, criminal prosecution and substantial harm to business reputation. Follow this link to see the HSE Guidance on driving safety at work.
Compliance with road safety should be one of the primary concerns and employers should have appropriate procedures in place to ensure thorough licence checks of staff at the recruitment stage and regularly thereafter, as well as implementing relevant policies in relation to usage of cars and mobile phones whilst driving. Staff are also required to fully understand the implications and likely consequences of not adhering to those policies
Aspire can assist you in drafting and implementing relevant policies, as well as reviewing and putting forward recommendations relating to your recruitment and regular checks procedure to ensure full compliancy.
Aspire previously published other news articles on this matter. To read our previous news articles, click:
Eight-thousand drivers caught using their phones whilst driving