You may think that if you don’t run a delivery business and your employees aren’t truck drivers, that as an employer you have no duty to check up on the driving of your staff. Unless they spend long hours driving, then is it really necessary? The answer is yes.
All employers should have a policy in place regarding road safety, if members of staff ever have to drive during their work. This includes driving to other sites, driving to meetings or to visit customers or clients.
FACT: It is estimated that a third of all road traffic accidents involve somebody who is at work at the time.
What can I do as an employer?
Now that you realise you do need to think about driver safety, here are some ways to make employees safer on the road.
Implement a policy
The first thing to do is to let staff know that when they are driving, they are still at work, and their safety is in your hands. You will probably need to write a driving at work policy for employees using their own vehicles. Make sure it is accessible to all staff and includes the key points for employees:
- If using your own vehicle for work purposes, it must be in a roadworthy condition
- Staff must have a valid driving licence
- Staff must have adequate insurance – employers can ask to see this annually
- Staff should ensure they are fit to drive. If they feel unwell or have recently changed their medication they must inform a manager
Other measures
Employers can take other steps to keep staff safe where driving is concerned.
For example, look at how many journeys employees are making in work hours – can these be reduced in any way?
Are face to face meetings essential, or can video conferencing be used instead? In certain cases, the particular job or service requires face to face contact, but for other business meetings there is usually an alternative. If it doesn’t compromise the customer experience, this might be a good one to look at.
Next, think about how local the journey is and is driving really necessary? Could you suggest your employees walk or catch the train to the next client meeting?
Help shape change
When all we seem to hear about on the news is road accidents, we should all help reduce this as much as possible and remember that change can start at work. By using the tips above as a starting point, employers can play their part.
