Driving safety at the Health & Safety Event

For a long time, driver risk management was seen as the responsibility of fleet managers. If you were the person who managed company cars or vans, and consequently were responsible for handing the keys over to the employee, it would most likely fall to you to issue any policies about the use of company vehicles, check that the driver had a licence and deal with the outcomes of any subsequent incidents.

The world of business motoring has changed. The ongoing shift to a leasing-led model of fleet operations has seen businesses move away from having company-owned vehicles managed by a fleet or transport manager, with vehicles’ replacement cycles and repairs now outsourced to leasing and accident management providers. In some cases, there is no longer a dedicated internal fleet manager role; the associated responsibilities having been added to the long list of tasks handled by a facilities administrator.

Why fleet is now yours to manage

The overall landscape has been affected by numerous additional factors, including the prevalence of car allowances, along with remote or hybrid working, which have driven the continued growth of the nation’s ‘grey fleet’. For some companies this has broadened the scope of fleet risk management to include gathering information on employees’ own vehicles and their insurance, and the reassessment of each worker’s need for business travel. For others, such those operating in the ride-sharing and last-mile delivery sectors for example, reliance on ‘gig’ workers who aren’t viewed as employees has resulted in the detachment of driver and vehicle management from the entire operational model.

For many health and safety managers, the upshot of this is an increase in their area of responsibility, amidst a sea of unknowns. The good thing is, those with an understanding of health and safety are best placed to understand and implement the policies and procedures that affect workers’ safety, and to address the human factors. This shift in responsibility will naturally be accompanied by a reframing of fleet management as an area driven by the need to ensure employee welfare, as opposed to the supply of equipment and management of costs. Ultimately, businesses stand to benefit financially from robust, people-centric driver risk management, through the reduction in collisions and the associated costs of repairs and downtime, and in the avoidance of negative reputational impact.

Empowering solutions

At IAM RoadSmart, our focus has to reflect those changes in the landscape for businesses. As a road safety charity, our primary aim is to ensure the safety of all road users, and developing our solutions to aid and empower health and safety professionals is an increasingly important and meaningful route. In 2024 we have already launched RoadSmart, our updated online risk management portal, app-based e-learning for drivers. 

Later in the year, we’ll also be launching a learning workshop for managers keen to find out more about what they need to do to achieve compliance and enhance driver safety, addressing those challenges that you ask us about at exhibitions! 

Find out more at iamroadsmart.com/business