Britain's safest fleets to be urged to drive home risk managment focus to industry at 'business champions' event.

The 43 ‘business champions’ that have so far been recruited to the Government-backed ‘Driving for Better Business’ campaign are to be encouraged to increasingly promote the benefits of safe driving to their industry and business sectors and employers in their areas.

The call for the ‘business champions’ to take up the safety baton and promote the financial, legal and moral benefits of occupational road risk management will be made at a specialevent for  “business champions” on Thursday, April 29.

Diversified technology company 3M, which believes in taking pro-active steps to promote road safety and is one of the 43 ‘business champion’ fleets, is hosting the ‘Driving for Better Business’ event at its Bracknell head office.

3M’s initiatives include a ban on all employees from using even hands-free mobile phones while driving.

It was among the first major companies in the UK to bring in such a ban and it did so in the face of initial reluctance to change from its employees. Many of them, especially its sales staff, had become used to making calls to customers on the move.

Research shows that using a hand-held or hands-free mobile phone while driving is
a significant distraction, and substantially increases the risk of the driver crashing. Indeed, drivers who use a mobile phone, whether hand-held or hands-free, are four times more likely to crash, injuring or killing themselves and/or other people.

One of the main themes for discussion at the event is the management of driver distractions based around a presentation by Britta Lang, principal research consultant at TRL (Transport Research Laboratory).

The ‘Driving for Better Business’ campaign is managed on behalf of the Department for Transport by RoadSafe, and other speakers will include: Duncan Vernon, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents’ road safety manager for England, who will provide an insight into the newly launched Government-backed ‘young drivers at work’ employer workshop initiative.

The event will also highlight how fleets can become involved in the eSafety Challenge 2010 event, which is being held at the Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire on July 13. In addition, Stephanie Pratt, from the United States National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and a world authority on driving for work, will be in attendance.

Michael Parish, programme consultant for the ‘Driving for Better Business’ campaign, who is organising the event, said: “The aim of the event is to enable the ‘business champions’ to discuss safety issues of concern to them in order to shape the future of the campaign.

“But all of our ‘business champions’ have a fantastic story to tell about the initiatives they have taken to reduce road crashes involving employees, simultaneously saving money and ensuring they are compliant with the very latest duty of care legislation.

“We want all of them to spread their message about how they successfully manage the safety of their employees driving for work and tell their story to other business organisations whether they operate in the same area of business or are located in the same town or city.

“We all share the road and we all work together. The at-work driving safety measures taken by one organisation may encourage another business to look at how they manage their drivers and that will help everyone. We encourage our ‘champions’ to share best practice through the Driving for Better Business website. Our ‘business champions’ can make a real difference.”

Notes

1. The Driving for Better Business campaign being run by RoadSafe forms part of the Department for Transport’s Driving for Work road safety strategy. The aim of the campaign is to raise awareness of the importance of work-related road safety, in the business community and public sector by using advocates drawn from these communities to promote the business benefits of managing it effectively.

2. The current 43 Business Champions are:

3M

Arval UK Ltd.; Atkins plc;

Balfour Beatty plc; Bethell Group plc; British Telecom plc

Cambridgeshire County Council; CE Electric UK; Central Auto Supplies; Centrica (British Gas); CGG Veritas; Chamberlain Doors Ltd; Chelmsford Electrical Ltd; City of York Council;

Essex County Council;

Faversham House Group Ltd.

Gateshead Council; General Motors UK Ltd.; Gloucestershire County Council; Greene King plc

hannaford; Hermes;

Johnson & Johnson

Kaba Doors Ltd.; Kier Harlow;

Langleys Solicitors; LeasePlan UK Ltd; London Borough of Hackney Council;

M&G Vehicle Hire Ltd.

nkl automotive ltd; Northgate plc;

RES Teesdale Scaffold Ltd.; Royal Mail Group plc;

Sainsbury’s; Scottish and Southern Energy plc; Seashell Trust

Tesco plc; T-Mobile UK Ltd.; TNT Express;

United Utilities (Operational Services)

Whitbread plc; Wolseley plc;

YourFleet Ltd;