Survey reveals car safety taking a back seat

It has been claimed that 60 per cent of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) are failing to ensure that their staff are fit to drive while on company business.

This is just one of the findings contained in a recent survey undertaken by HSBC Vehicle Finance into the issue of company behaviour on health and safety issues. The contract hire services company interviewed a variety of SMEs to see if they carried out an annual risk assessment on their drivers’ entitlement to drive – such as checking driving licences and other records. HSBC Vehicle Finance found that 61 per cent of medium-sized firms undertook no such assessment, with failure to review risk even greater with smaller companies, standing at 79 per cent.

The findings come at a time of increasing awareness about health and safety issues - and managers and directors who fail to adhere to current legislation and regulations could find themselves being prosecuted. To ensure they keep within the rules, written records of both the assessments and follow-up action should be kept, as those in charge may find the Health and Safety Executive, the police or local authorities demanding to see such records.

Jonathan Craymer, secretary of the Fleet Driver Training Association, commented: “All businesses which require staff to drive on their behalf should check drivers’ licences. First to ensure that they have them; secondly, to check that they are appropriate for the types of vehicle to be driven; and thirdly, to see there are no convictions.” (CL)