The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 came into force on 6th April 2008. There are no new obligations or duties introduced by the act, but firms who do not comply with existing health and safety rules are now more likely to be prosected in the event of a death caused by negligence.

For most people, driving is the most dangerous activity undertaken whilst at work. Every week, it is estimated that 20 people are killed on the UK roads in a collision that involves somebody who is working at the time. Firms who use vehicles at work need to ensure that the vehicles themselves are in good working order and that the drivers use them safely.

Under the new act, it is now easier to bring about prosecutions in the event of a death. Previously, a single individual needed to be at fault to ensure a successful prosection. The new act  now allows prosecution for gross failures in the management of health and safety within a company as a whole.

To help firms become compliant, we have produced a list of 10 points that will help firms fulfill their duty of care:

1. Produce a driving for work policy to supplement you current health and safety policies.
2. Assign a senior manager to take responsibility for managing driving at work.
3. Begin an on-going programme of risk assessments to cover vehicle safety, driver safety and journey planning.
4. Record all incidents and analyse this information regularly.
5. Ensure all vehicles, company-owned and privately-owned, are regularly inspected and serviced in accordance with the manufacturer guidelines.
6. Purchase vehicles suitable for the intended use and pay particular attention to availabel safety features.
7. Ensure all employees are suitably assessed, vetted, trained, licenced and fit to drive.
8. Produce a drivers handbook, detailing company policies on things like mobile phone use and driving when tired.
9. Ensure journey planning provides the necessary time to complete the journey with regular stops.
10. Consider the necessity of all journeys along with car-sharing, telephone conference calls etc.

If you require any help on the issues above, please use our contact form.

Eco-Driving Tips

Saving money is very fashionable currently for businesses and consumers alike. With petrol prices high in the UK and tax rises more probable than tax cuts, motorists are looking more economical vehicles when, in reality, they could save money with a more economical driving style. Here, we outline some simple but effective measures that could easily save the average motorist over £250pa.

1. Anticipate traffic conditions so as to avoid harsh acceleration followed by heavy braking. If you concentrate on driving smoothly you will become more safe and more economical.
2. Use gradients wisely. When going downhill, remain in gear but come off the accelerator early – a modern engine will shut down the fuel supply as you roll down the hill.
3. Change to a higher gear earlier – and certainly change gear by 2500rpm. Keep revs as low as you can without labouring the engine.
4. Stick to speed limits.85mph on uses about 25% more fuel than 70mph. And it’s illegal.
5. Reduce fuel consumption by switching off the aircon and satnav, removing the unnecessary roofrack and taking the golf clubs out of the boot!
6. Keep tyre pressures correct to avoid drag.
7. Plan your journey to avoid traffic jams, busy periods and roadworks. In fact, ask yourself if the journey is actually necessary in the first place.

Eco driver training is just one of the services we offer. If you require more information, please contact us or click here if you would like to train as a driving instructor to teach these techniques.

Free Advice on Health & Safety Compliance regarding Company Drivers.

Accufleet Driver Training are now offering FREE advice to businesses and organisations who are unsure about their responsibilities under Health & Safety and Corporate Manslaughter legislation.

In the last few years, we have seen the introduction of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 and more recently the The Health and Safety Offences Act 2008 as well as recent developments in case law.

We acknowledge that it is difficult for managers to keep up to date with ever changing rules, regulations and penalties. For that reason, we are happy to visit you and discuss your current policies and procedures and to see if they need improving to ensure compliance.

This offer is limited to a certain number of clients. If you would like any more information, please contact us.

Free Road Safety Presentations

Accufleet Driver Training are pleased to announce that we are now offering road safety presentations to businesses and organisations.

In association with Brake, the road safety charity we have made a commitment to offer these presentations as a means to improve work-related road safety.

It is estimted that one in every three road collisions involved someone on work business. That equates to approximately 20 road deaths per week.

At Accufleet, we take road safety seriously. As a result, we have teamed up with Brake to deliver some enjoyable but serious presentations to your staff – FREE OF CHARGE!

We are not offering boring lectures. Instead, we involve participants through activities and demonstrations backed up with hard-hitting videos.

Depending on how large you workforce is, we deliver the presentations in groups of about 25, lasting about 1.5hrs. We realise this may eat into company time but we will be as flexible as possible to facilitate the opportunity.

From our point of view, if all this works saves just one life – it will be worth it.

We are only able to offer a certain amount of free presentations so this offer is not going to last forever and will be decided on a first come, first served basis. The free presentations are limited to one per organisation but we will keep prices down for the ones we have to charge for. Contact us now for more information.