International spread of companies in line for top award

The shortlist is:

Allianz UK

The insurance company has around 1500 vehicles and a further 2000 grey fleet drivers. It implemented a programme of risk assessment and e-learning, modifying it and working with its own insurers. As a result, compliance with driver training has doubled in a short period of time, a win for both employees and business alike. Process changes have provided a net saving to the business of approximately £80k per year.

Arriva Merseyside

The organisation operates public transport across the Liverpool City Region from seven depots managing 580 passenger vehicles, plus more than 80 support vans.

A combination of actions includes a focus on collisions occurring at bus stops; use of telematics – which has received widespread acceptance by drivers; and a reduction in engine idling time by more than 4,000 hours.

Autoserve

Improving driver risk management has directly benefited the business as it has led to a reduction in the frequency and severity of accidents, resulting in lower premiums on employees’ own insurance policies. The company recognises that by prioritising driver safety and managing risk, it not only fulfils its duty of care to employees but also protects its assets and reputation.

CBES Ltd

CBES is one of the UK’s leaders in engineering and construction projects in a variety of sectors including Retail, Health, Education and Commercial. It has a fleet of 429 vehicles – most being vans.

With fleet size growing rapidly, keeping on top of on-road collisions has been paramount – with strong leadership from the board. Through telematics, the company has a detailed picture of driving performance in relation to speed and can identify and reward best drivers and engage with worst performing drivers.

David Phillips Furniture Ltd

The company delivers, assembles and installs furnishings for rent, residential, social, student and retirement living markets. It has a fleet of 42 diesel Luton 3.5-ton vans.

Drivers cover long distances on motorways and A roads followed by deliveries to towns and cities and has scheduling managers who plan routes in advance.

The company reports more than 50% reduction in collisions and average fleet maintenance costs have been cut from £1700 to £1100 per vehicle per year – plus a saving of £28,000 per year on hire costs. Lower insurance premiums mean a saving of approximately £10,000.

Imperial Brands (UK Field Sales)

The UK field sales fleet comprises 260 cars. An In-Vehicle Monitoring System in all vehicles helps to focus on Speed, Braking, Cornering and Acceleration. In implementing this, the company set clear guidelines on how and when the data provided can be used by the business. This proved invaluable after a vehicle was stolen and enabling a full recovery within a few hours. The company is also able to monitor, manage and ultimately reduce fuel spend and fleet emissions.

Jacobs

Jacobs is one of the world’s largest providers of professional technical services, with 60,000 employees globally. Of its 7,000 employees in Europe, more than 2,500 are registered as business drivers. The company recognises that driving presents one of its biggest safety risks, so is only authorised when people must travel to more remote locations. The company works closely with its insurers about all improvements and innovations, so secures lower insurance premiums year on year. Overall, mileage driven has been cut as people fully evaluate their travel options before choosing to drive.

Morrison Water Services

A fleet of 269 vans and 14 trucks serves this water utilities provider in London and the Thames Valley, averaging 3.8 billion miles per year. Giving drivers access to their own safety dashboard helped to reduce instances of speeding and harsh driving from 135 to 68 and brought down the annual average total cost per vehicle by 36%. Through proactive measures, continuous training, and data-driven insights, the company seeks to create a safer working environment while simultaneously reducing costs and enhancing overall efficiency.

NorthernPowergrid

Northern Powergrid manages the electricity network for more than 8 million people across 3.9 million homes and businesses in the North East, Yorkshire and northern Lincolnshire. Its fleet is mixed, including 49 HGVs, around 1500 vans and 1213 grey fleet cars, covering a total business mileage of 15,322,819.

The organisation classifies collisions on their preventability and uses a telematics score dashboard shared with the management team of every fleet driver on a weekly basis.

Although mileage increased by 642,749 from 2022 to 2023, the utility reduced preventable collisions by 10.78% over the period.

RSK Group

The company is a global leader in the delivery of sustainable solutions, operating in more than 40 countries and employing over 12,000 people. 
It has more than 6,000 vehicles – predominantly vans – and through a programme in conjunction with RED Corporate Driver Training, the company has seen a reduction of over 15% in collisions over the last 12 months.

Feedback from RSK’s insurance broker and insurance underwriter demonstrates their recognition and support of this successful partnership.

Speedy

The tool and equipment hire company has a fleet of 1500 vehicle ranging from small panel vans, 4x4's, large panel, dropside vans. HGVs, tankers and cranes.

Speedy has seen a reduction in accident rates. The factors contributing to this reduction are partly due to the introduction of the Driver Risk Indicator which enables a specialist group to review every incident, regardless of seriousness to make decisions on liability. The company has also seen the full rollout of an innovative bespoke PDA accident reporting system, capturing real time information at the point of incident/collision, which reduced incident reporting time dramatically. This has reduced collision costs by 11%, a cost saving of £234,010.

TES 2000 LTD

This is a railway infrastructure and construction company providing in a broad array of services within Network Rail's framework.

It has a fleet of 137 vehicles, mainly vans and focuses on reducing the number of road collisions, with the help of real-time alerts and immediate driver follow-ups, reducing daily incident alerts from 600 to 15, and so creating a culture of safety and accountability. Insurance costs have been reduced by £97 per vehicle, and the company received an £11,000 insurance rebate in recognition of its effective risk management efforts.

Willmott Dixon Holdings

This is a British, privately-owned, contracting and interior fit-out group. Its fleet comprises 1,500 grey fleet drivers, 600 company cars, and 600 van drivers.
The company adopts a proactive approach to addressing driver risk, recognised by employees as a mandatory health and safety requirement. The Driver policy and handbook are reviewed annually and can be viewed at any time. Driver risk manager training is provided to HR teams Group wide; new EV and van drivers are provided with on-road familiarisation; and regular updates and advice are issued to the whole company, such as on winter driving and highway code changes.

The Best Driver Risk Management Performance Award was created to recognise employers who have taken a proactive, comprehensive, and consistent approach to the management of their work-related road risk. Safer drivers are involved in fewer incidents, cause less damage, less wear and tear on company vehicles and use less fuel, which is currently a critical issue for many organisations. As well as a significant reduction in on-road incidents, submissions had to demonstrate a range of other business benefits such as reductions in fleet insurance costs, maintenance costs, fuel spend and emissions. They may also be able to demonstrate tangible improvements in driver wellbeing and safety culture. They will have shown exceptional initiative, boldness, and exemplary management practices.

Through the award, National Highways seeks to broaden awareness of the importance of managing work-related road risk with employers, and specifically health and safety professionals. Driving for work is one of the highest-risk activities that most employees undertake. It is also a significant cost to the business. National Highways’ own Driving for Better Business programme, which is entirely free to access, shares many examples of good practice along with a library of free resources to help employers gain peace of mind that they are legally compliant, are regarded as better places to work, and perform at a higher level of efficiency than those that don’t.

Judges are looking for clear, quantifiable, simply explained submissions with a distinct and recent timeframe. They want evidence of significant improvements that have delivered measurable business benefits, such as a reduction in collisions cutting lower insurance premiums or improved fuel economy reducing costs.

Mark Sennett, CEO of Western Business Media the publisher of Health and Safety Matters says: “This is still a new category for us, so it has been astonishing to see the number of submissions and the diversity of sectors these companies represent. It’s vitally important that organisations take steps to protect employees who drive or ride for work. We support the vision of safely managing work-related road risks and this award is aimed at celebrating those that have made a significant contribution to that aim.”

Mel Clarke, health, safety & wellbeing director, National Highways, who will present the award says: “Road Safety is National Highways’ top priority, and we are committed to reducing harm on the network.  I am proud that National Highways is sponsoring the ‘best driver risk management performance’ category at the Safety and Health Excellence Awards. We want to recognise the commitment to good management of work-related road risk and celebrate those organisations who are helping to everyone get home safe and well.”

The winner will be announced at the Safety & Health Excellence Awards at a dinner for more than 750 experts and hosted by comedian and TV presenter Dara Ó Briain on 1 May 2024 at The Vox, Birmingham.