OCCUPATIONAL ROAD RISK
Driver Training
THE TRANSPORT SECTOR NEWS AND INFORMATION MAGAZINE – www.transportbusiness.net
E between £8 and £36 may be lost through uninsured costs. Accidents can also impact negatively on worker morale, and, particularly when they involve liveried vehicles, can adversely affect corporate reputation. Preventing accidents, therefore, makes good business sense. If firms, and particularly SMEs, are worried about the cost of prevention – and in the current difficult economic climate, this is entirely understandable – consideration should be given to the substantial savings that will arise from fewer accidents, and also from driving more fuel efficiently. When options for protecting the bottom line by increasing sales and turnover are limited, avoiding the losses caused by accidents becomes all the more important. LEGAL ISSUES There are also legal prompts for taking work-related road risk seriously. Guidance from the HSE makes it clear that employers have a duty under health and safety law to manage the risks faced by their employees on the road. The police also look at work-related factors when road crashes are investigated, and we have previously seen company directors successfully prosecuted for manslaughter after crashes that could be linked back to working practices, including where drivers had been allowed to spend excessively long hours at the wheel. With April 2008 marking the implementation of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act, there has also been a great deal of speculation about if and when we will see this revised law used in relation to work-related road deaths. MANAGING RISK To effectively address occupational road risk, RoSPA advocates that organisations need a robust management system, rather than a series of disjointed one-off interventions. Training is an important part of this system and risk assessment, preferably on a driverby-driver basis, will identify specific training needs, meaning scarce resources can be directed to where action is really needed. There has been concern that training itself has simply been seen as a tick-box exercise by some organisations. However, this is a waste of its true potential. Continuous improvement is a key part of driving careers (whether professional or private) and training – and specifically the Driver CPC scheme, which provides a framework for ongoing and regular training – enables individuals to keep their skills fresh. HOW DOES DRIVER CPC WORK? Driver CPC was introduced for professional bus and coach (PCV) drivers in September 2008 and was extended to cover professional lorry (LGV) drivers in September 2009. Professional drivers of lorries of 3.5 tonnes and upwards and passenger-carrying vehicles with nine seats or more are covered by the Driver CPC arrangements
Employers of all kinds are well placed to make a valuable input towards reducing the tragic toll of death and injury on our roads. If they lead by example, we could see road safety becoming a greater priority throughout society in general. and just holding a vocational licence is no longer enough for someone to work as a professional bus, coach or lorry driver. Those who gain their Driver CPC are issued with a Driver Qualification Card (DQC), and it will be mandatory for a driver to carry this while driving. Drivers must complete 35 hours of periodic training in seven-hour blocks every five years to maintain their Driver CPC. Those who are new to the driving profession can acquire their Driver CPC at the same time as their vocational licence. After this initial acquisition, these new professional drivers will need to meet periodic training requirements. Existing professional drivers do not have to pass the initial qualification, but they are subject to the periodic training requirements and must complete their first 35 hours by 9 September 2013 (PCV) or 9 September 2014 (LGV). Among the subjects on the Driver CPC syllabus are safe and fuel-efficient driving, tacograph and drivers’ hours rules, customer service and dealing with emergencies. There are penalties for professional PCV or LGV drivers who drive without a Driver CPC and for those who are not carrying their DQC while they are driving. There are also penalties for operators who cause or permit a driver to drive without a Driver CPC or DQC. Any EU enforcement body, including the police, VOSA and the DVLA, are able to ask drivers for proof of their Driver CPC – so it makes sense to ensure your organisation is compliant.
TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY From its outset, the Driver CPC scheme has offered a real opportunity for the professional driving industries to enhance their role in respect of road safety. RoSPA is delighted to be playing a part in this – by being an approved training centre, offering a range of solutions to help organisations and individuals comply with the regulations. The challenge remains to raise the profile of managing occupational road risk among organisations that do not employ professional drivers in the traditional sense, but which have, for example, fleets of sales reps, managers who drive to meetings or workers who travel between sites. Please be assured that RoSPA will continue its work to encourage these firms to take road safety seriously, recognising that the passenger transport and haulage industries are not the only ones that have a road safety role to play. Employers of all kinds are well placed to make a valuable input towards reducing the tragic toll of death and injury on our roads. If they lead by example, we could see road safety becoming a greater priority throughout society in general. L FOR MORE INFORMATION For more information about Driver CPC and how you can ensure your organisation is compliant, visit www.rospa.com/drivertraining/cpc/ default.aspx or call RoSPA’s training team on 0121 2482233.
Volume 22 | TRANSPORT BUSINESS INTERNATIONAL
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