The Association for Driving Licence Verification (ADLV) is urging fleet managers to increase the frequency of driving licence checks for high-risk drivers.
The ADLV recommends monthly checks on drivers with more than nine points as a matter of best-practice.
The recommendations seek to build on guidelines by the Freight Transport Association and FORS (Fleet Operators Recognition Scheme) which both recommend drivers should be checked at least bi-annually as a matter of course.
However, according to the ADLV, as a driver gets closer to losing their licence, carrying out more frequent checks makes good sense – as penalty points and potential disqualifications can happen quickly through totting up. It’s simply not enough, says the Association, for fleets to rely on drivers self-declaring when they receive penalties. Rather, full compliance should be based on a managed risk-based approach.
Commenting on the new policy directive, Mark Sugden, Secretary of the ADLV said, “Driving remains one of the most hazardous activities British employees can be expected to undertake on behalf of their employers. Britain has a high number of road fatalities and, sadly, between five and six hundred each year involve people or vehicles in work-related crashes.
“For such potentially high-risk work, one would expect driving licence checks to be frequent and thorough. But, as a recent poll revealed, some companies only run checks once a year, and many still rely on employees to inform them of any changes. When someone’s job is on the line, the sad fact is that relying on trust simply isn’t enough.”
ADLV says that a recent RAC Insurance survey discovered that only 13% of respondents would inform their employers of penalty points that they incurred, with 25% already having points that they had previously failed to disclose. Many fleets run no follow-up checks, only checking documentation properly when new employees join. This means there could well be employees who are no longer legally entitled to drive behind the wheel, leaving their organisation wide open to considerable fines, and, in the case of an incident or crash, severe reputational damage.
Photo: Mark Sugden