News

In addition to this news page, Nigel Grainger runs a regular Road Risk Management Blog, Your Road Risk.

Are you comfortable in your office?

27 May 2008

If I told you that the Police could come and seize all your computers and seal off your office for as long as it takes, just because one of your vehicles has been involved in a collision, would you be surprised or concerned?

The Police treat all serious collisions, those involving death or life changing injuries, as crime scenes. They operate with reference to a document titled ‘Road Death Investigation Manual’ it lays out how deaths on the road should be investigated and prosecuted. By treating the scene as a crime scene they are already assuming that a crime has been committed, therefore they are looking for someone to prosecute. That someone could be YOU. They will seal the scene and have the collision investigators examine the area minutely for evidence.

You should be aware that the Police may seize mobile telephones, data recorders, tachographs, engine management chips, telematics systems, laptop computers and the vehicles themselves and hold them until after any prosecution and appeal period, at which time they will be returned. In my experience this can be anything up to and occasionally beyond twelve months, dependent on the circumstances of the incident.

The Police could be waiting at your desk when you arrive as they can obtain a warrant and ‘enter’ your premises without you being present; if they feel that there is evidence to be found. There are ways to manage this type of situation; professional risk management companies like us will give you all the tools you need to protect you and your business from prosecution.

Wanted for corporate manslaughter

17 April 2008

The Corporate Manslaughter Act is now in force and businesses found to be negligent in their handling of health and safety face the prospect of unlimited fines and humbling publicity orders. There’s never been a more crucial time to ensure your fleet car policy would survive under scrutiny.

Deaths in the workplace are less common now than in the recent past. The closure of pits and factories during the 1980s removed many of the big hazards from our working lives. These days the big killers are cars – or rather the people driving them. According to the Department of Transport, out of the 3,173 work-related deaths that took place in 2006, around a third were caused by traffic accidents. Therefore, as an employer, it is essential that you have a clearly defined health and safety policy regarding any vehicles used for work purposes, or you could face prosecution. The new act has made it possible for entire companies to be charged with manslaughter, and the penalties are potentially onerous. Companies face unlimited fines and publicity orders, where your business could be forcibly ‘named and shamed’ in the press.

Under previous laws, employers could be held to account if, for instance, they allowed employees to use vehicles that were not fully roadworthy. However, the old legislation required there to be a single individual found responsible before charges could be brought. This meant that larger companies could often wriggle out of trouble, whereas owner-managers were more easily found to be culpable.

The new law could be said to be fairer, but it is no less tough.

Your fleet

It doesn’t matter if it is the sales rep who drives 100,000 miles a year in a company car, or the cleaning lady dropping letters off on her way home using her own vehicle, you have a responsibility to make sure they are safe and compliant. By law, all companies have a duty of care towards their employees and the public. But it is crucial that you also have a strong paper trail to back up the fact that you have ensured your fleet is compliant.

Allen Bewley, of road risk management consultancy IRC, was formerly the head of risk management at the RAC, and now advises the police on the subject.  “Businesses need to have robust procedures and processes, as well as a really strong audit trail,” he says. “You need to be clear about what your policy is and show how it has been carried out.”

Make sure you have copies of key documents, such as driving licences, MOT certificates and insurance details, as well as proof that the vehicle is regularly maintained and serviced. If you have your own fleet of cars that you lease from a third party, it is likely that much of this will already be taken care of, but, nevertheless, many firms still get tripped up on the basics.

“Businesses aren’t checking licences enough,” says Nigel Grainger of Fleet Risk Consultants, which advises firms on compliance issues. “Inadequate insurance is another area, especially if the vehicle is the employee’s private car. You need class one business insurance, but many people don’t have it because they don’t realise they need it or understand that it won’t cost them much more.” Grainger adds that ‘grey fleets’ – private cars used for work purposes – are the “biggest worry” for firms.

Danger signs

Indications that a driver is careless are often fairly obvious. For instance, if they are regularly incurring traffic offences and/or having minor collisions, then clearly they aren’t driving well.

Slightly less obvious is fuel consumption. If you have a fleet of similar vehicles and one driver is doing far fewer miles per gallon than the others, they are clearly speeding. Don’t let this go unnoticed or unremarked upon. Also, check the cars of the heaviest road users more regularly.

“If you bought a car which was brand new and has done 60,000 miles yet hasn’t been serviced, then that’s negligent,” warns Grainger.

A police visit

If one of your staff is involved in a fatal car accident during the course of their work, then be prepared to be investigated by the police. However, don’t expect it to be the transport police, as it will be the homicide squad that takes the case. “The police are required to treat all road deaths as unlawful unless there’s proof otherwise. Therefore, it is up to your systems to prove your innocence,” says Bewley ominously.

Any vehicle involved in a death could be taken away as evidence for as long as two years. Also, technically, they could seize your computer if, for instance, they wanted to look at emails relevant to your fleet management.

The latest solutions

It is little wonder many firms are now looking at ways to reduce risk. Car-sharing clubs are growing in popularity and are offering business accounts. Meanwhile, Brett Akker, founder of car rental company Streetcar, is expecting his consumer-focused operation to start catering for many more companies, which he claims could soon make up half of his business. “One of our key areas for the year is our business product, and we already have many people coming to us to replace their fleet vehicles or grey cars,” he says.

Of course, safety experts like Grainger and Bewley are also offering their services. IRC provides a software package that monitors hazard awareness and pinpoints weaknesses. If you have a larger fleet, this could offer immediate assistance, but no matter how many cars you have, there has never been a more important time to ensure your policies are compliant.

The wake-up call

10 ways to improve compliance

As an employer, you must make sure your staff know the law on company cars and your own policies. However, they shouldn’t be led to believe that it is your responsibility alone. Staff are personally accountable for their driving, but it is essential that you are covered, and this means having thorough policies and a strong paper trail.

1) Set up an account with the DVLA. This isn’t costly and means that you can make sure driving licences are valid. Check all licences every six months to be sure.

2) Take copies of insurance documents and MOT certificates. If it is the employee’s private car, then ensure they have cover for work use and update this every 12 months.

3) Make sure your fleet is roadworthy. Companies like Kwik Fit will check all the tyres in your car park for free, and it is estimated that 25% are below the legal minimum standard.

4) Develop a health and safety policy. All businesses need one in general, but there should be one specifically for driving, which has been read, understood and signed by all staff. Ideally, this should form a part of your induction policy.

5) Respond to traffic offences. You don’t need to discipline someone for speeding, but it is vital you have documentation that shows you have told them it is against company policy.

6) Ensure managers are responsible. If you send an employee out on the road who is clearly fatigued, then you could be failing in your duty of care. Your managers must be trained in safety. Also, it is against the law to offer incentives on the number of journeys made.

7) Be wary of mobile phones. Even if you provide a mobile phone and hands-free kit, protracted calls on the road aren’t advised. Also, personal phone use should be discouraged, so set a clear policy.

8) Pay for driving lessons. Especially if someone is young, inexperienced or will be using a car they are not used to.

9) Investigate crashes. If a driver keeps damaging their vehicle you must respond. Do they require more training or are they under pressure to drive fast? Investigate and document all your findings.

10) Consider outside help. Health and safety consultants can audit your business, identify hazards and suggest and implement solutions.

(Source: Growing Business Online - April 2008)

Welcome to the DARK side

12 October 2007

It is that time of year again, where the weather deteriorates and the nights get darker. The summer is a distant memory and we all dream of sunnier times. The leaves fall gently from the trees in varying shades of russet. There are cars in ditches, hedges and attached to other cars all over the place.

That's right we are entering the peak season for car crashes.

The meeting of wet weather, leaves on the road and sudden darkness make it a haven for cars missing the vital point of cohesion with the black stuff. In essence your vehicle will not behave in the same way it did last month due to the season, UNLESS you take extra care.

It is a well known fact that people perceive distance differently in the half light we get at this time of year, that's without factoring in the low sun in the mornings. This means that you may struggle to judge the depth of the safety area around your vehicle and the distance between you and the object you really want to avoid.

Also those leaves, the same ones that cause trouble for the trains, will have a fundamental affect on the grip afforded to your tyres by the road. What happens is the leaves fall to the road in numbers too great to be dispersed by the passing traffic. As they are also likely to be wet or damp they stick together too, this causes a film of wet leaves to sit between your tyres and the grip of the tarmac road surface. We collision investigators estimate that the grips afforded by these leaves is somewhere between sheet ice and dry snow, and you all slow down for those types of condition.

Some vehicles are now fitted with various traction and stability control systems in addition to ABS, please be under no illusions that these systems may not make any difference in these conditions as to function they need a certain amount of grip available. Whilst we are on the subject of ABS it might be a good point to state that it takes longer to stop a vehicle with ABS in a straight line than it does without ABS. ALL ABS does is avoid the vehicle skidding and allowing you to take evasive action.

The only sure way to avoid a costly trip to the Bodyshop, or worse Casualty, is to GET SPACE, MAINTAIN SPACE and SLOW DOWN. You should GET SPACE by increasing the gap to the front of you and side of you, where possible, because the further away the vehicle in front is, the further you can take to slide to a halt without hitting him. To MAINTAIN that SPACE you need to be vigilant and keep the gap large enough, if someone fills the gap then be sensible, breath deeply and GET SPACE again. SLOW DOWN as the slower you are travelling the more time you have to correct any problems that occur.

Remember last week on average 70 people died on our roads and roughly the same number will die next week too, don’t let it be you.

Back to School

3 September 2007

The schools are back, in the main, this week.

It would be a good time to remind all your staff of this fact. The reminder might take the form of a short memo pointing out the fact that the roads and pavements will be full of youngsters who have either forgotten about the roads or are too excited, concerned, upset to worry about cars. The roads will be busier and journeys will take longer as the first day back usually has more parents than normal visiting school. Plan ahead and give yourself more time.

My personal opinion is that 10mph is plenty fast enough near schools this week, but slower is always better where children are concerned. That does not make me a speed killjoy. Driving is all about reacting and managing the road around you and if you assume a child WILL run out in front of your car you can plan for that eventuality.

Please get your people to take care as this is the one area we do not want any work generating.

Personal Safety

29 August 2007

If there is one thing everyone should have in their vehicle it is a reflective vest.

If you carry nothing else for your own protection I would recommend that you go and buy a reflective vest. The vest can be packed into the front driver's door pocket so you can get it if you are stopped at the side or middle of the road. These vests cost very little, typically less than £10.00.

The reason you want it in the door pocket is so you can put it on BEFORE leaving the relative safety of your vehicle.

Once you have exited your vehicle you will be more obvious to other road users and hopefully safer.

You should always stay to the side and upstream (nearer to the oncoming traffic) of your vehicle, then when someone collides with your stationary vehicle it is projected away from you and not into you.

Banned for being bald.

28 August 2007

Do you, or more importantly your employees, know the legal minimum for tread depth for cars and vans is currently 1.6mm of tread across the central three quarters of the tyre. Tyres with bald patches, bulges or cuts over 25mm long exposing the cords are also illegal and unsafe.

If you do, are you also aware that the penalty for an illegal tyre is 3 penalty points and a fine up to £2500. If you have four tyres that are illegal that could mean a ban from driving and a possible fine of up to £10,000.

Employers should be aware that an employee driving on business could expose the organisation to a charge of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring that same offence. This leaves the organisation exposed to similar penalties.

Most of the tyre fitting organisation will offer a service to come to your premises and check the legality of your vehicles tyres on a monthly basis. This system, if correctly used, could lead to any charges against the organisation being defended successfully.

This applies to vehicles in the UK only, the rules are different in other countries.

So as you can see being bald is no fun at all.

Driving Licences

23 July 2007

Do you know how many of your staff are driving on your business illegally?

Based on my direct experience with various organisations at least one member of staff will not have a driving licence and a couple will have defective eyesight.

Driving licences should be checked quarterly, but any organisation checking licences less than annually will find themselves, at some point, in serious trouble with either the HSE or the Police or both. At the same time it is good practice to check the eyesight of your staff. If you do this for all staff regardless of whether they drive or not you would have a much better case to present in court, should the need arise.

When you check the licences you should be on the look out for those that state replacement as there are drivers who apply for a replacement licence whilst the original has no points on it. They then produce the original to the courts and the ‘clean’ replacement to their employer. The best way to prevent this happening is to get a mandate signed to allow you to go direct to DVLA to check the licence of your drivers.

Another problem is that of reportable medical issues. Most drivers are unaware of the medical issues that DVLA are to be informed about, such as Sleep Apnoea. The reportable medical issues are readily available from DVLA, and we supply a copy with each and every risk policy we prepare.

What is a vehicle fleet and why should I care?

31 July 2007

I regularly meet people who run businesses or organisations that do not realise that they are a ‘fleet operator’ and they have certain responsibilities rising out of the use of vehicles for business. I think that this is because they perceive their vehicle usage to be too small to be considered a fleet and therefore outside regulations.

To help alleviate some of the confusion I thought it would be useful to highlight a few issues and give businesses some idea of the issues surrounding the use of vehicles for business.

The first place to start is I suppose is the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 which obligate all providers of work equipment to ensure it is 'suitable' for the purpose for which it is put to use. The regulations also apply to the self-employed. These regulations do apply to vehicles.

The road traffic act 1988 covers most of the issues regarding vehicles; this includes offences for causing and permitting. This means that if you are using a vehicle and it commits an offence, you could be open to prosecution. Using a vehicle includes someone driving for your benefit, e.g. a salesman travelling to see a customer.

The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require every employer to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of:
(a) the risks to the health and safety of his employees to which they are exposed whilst they are at work; and
(b) the risks to the health and safety of persons not in his employment arising out of or in connection with the conduct by him of his undertaking, for the purpose of identifying the measures he needs to take to comply with.

This also applies to the self employed.

The Police now ask specifically whether vehicles involved in collisions are being used for business purposes and that could then lead to questions for the employer / organisation using the vehicle.

I hope this helps you to be aware of your responsibilities, because no knowledge is no defence in law. If you are unsure of whether you have the right systems in place, I suggest that you check.

The Guide to Sleeping Soundly

17 July 2007

Nigel Grainger has written an article for the Press highlighting the potential pitfalls of running vehicles for business.

The article is available here.

Fleet Risk Consultants release free downloads

13 July 2007

Fleet Risk Consultants are pleased to announce that, as an integral part of their new website launch, to release three vital risk management tools as free download. Located at Resources it provides organisations with an easy to follow set of guidelines that anyone can follow.

Nigel Grainger commented 'I believe in sharing good practice whenever possible, because not everyone has the resources to do the research necessary to achieve best practice. This is an ideal route to share this type of information'.

Fleet Risk Consultants is a leading provider of Occupational Road Risk Management, Road Collision Investigation, Dangerous Goods Advice, Transport Management and Health and Safety Advice. Their aim is to assist companies to comply with Health and Safety legislation relating to vehicle use, protecting the interests of the company and it's staff, whilst maintaining operational effectiveness.

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Nigel Grainger runs a regular Road Risk Management Blog, Your Road Risk.

For more information on any of these news articles please contact Nigel Grainger at Fleet Risk Consultants on 07778 409433 or visit www.fleetriskconsultants.co.uk.