26/12 One in four road deaths involve an at-work driver

One in four road deaths involve an at-work driver

Hard-hitting DVD on safe driving for work launched by national road safety charity Brake



A quarter of all road deaths in Britain involve an at-work driver, according to Department for Transport statistics released by Brake, the road safety charity. In 2005, 850 people were killed and 6,012 seriously injured in crashes involving an at-work driver, meaning 16 people die and 117 are seriously injured every week in at-work crashes.[1]



These figures have become available for the first time as, in 2005, police started to record the journey purpose of vehicles involved in crashes. Brake obtained these figures directly from the Department for Transport, following its failure to publish at-work casualty statistics in Road Casualties Great Britain 2005, released in September.



Brake is urging UK companies to use these statistics as a wake-up call to ensure they have risk management practices in place to prevent road death and injury of their employees and other road users. To help companies educate employees, Brake is launching an awareness-raising DVD for company drivers, Busy Enough to Kill?, produced by Brake and supported by the Department for Transport. The DVD includes hard-hitting interviews with families bereaved by road crashes involving at-work drivers.



The DVD is being used through The FedEx & Brake Road Safety Academy, run by Brake and funded by express delivery company FedEx. The academy offers FREE training and resources, including the new DVD, to company representatives on delivering awareness-raising presentations to groups of drivers on safe driving. So far, more than 180 companies have taken part in this free programme and other companies are being encouraged to get involved.



Brake is also c all ing for all fatal and serious injury crashes involving someone driving for work to be investigated by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and for companies to be required by the HSE to report all at-work road crashes. Currently, companies are only required to report incidents and dangerous occurrences that happen on-site.



Jools Townsend, head of education at Brake , says: “Road safety campaigners have suspected for many years that a large proportion of road crashes involve people driving for work. These figures demonstrate how important it is that, firstly, the Government takes corporate responsibility for at-work driving seriously and, secondly, all employers take the life-savings steps of educating employees on safe driving and effectively managing their road risk. I would urge companies with employees who drive for work to take advantage of the free training and resources we offer to companies through the FedEx and Brake Road Safety Academy – including our new Busy Enough to Kill? DVD.”



Dr Stephen Ladyman MP, Minister of State for Transport, says: “The Department for Transport is very much committed to preventing work-related road crashes, and as part of this commitment we are pleased to provide funding to Brake to produce its ‘Busy Enough To Kill’ DVD. The DVD is a hard-hitting and effective resource that fleet managers will find invaluable in raising vital road safety awareness among their drivers.”



Case study:

Pamela Surman’s son Nick was killed age 37 while riding home on his motorbike. A van making early-morning deliveries hit him while pulling out from a side-junction. Pamela, who provided an interview for Brake’s Busy Enough to Kill? DVD, says: “The driver who ran Nicholas over made that journey every day. It was early morning so there was never anyone about. Then one day, he pulled out and hit a motorbike, killing my wonderful son. Nick was so full of life. The pain caused by his death never goes away. I’m urging all companies to do everything they can to ensure their drivers are not putting themselves and others at risk. Educate your drivers and make sure they never get complacent and never forget the terrible pain they could cause if they drive dangerously.”



Brake runs a division called the Fleet Safety Forum, which produces a range of resources for companies on managing their road risk. Companies can subscribe to the Fleet Safety Forum and receive monthly mailings for as little as £105-155 +VAT per year (costs depend on the size of the company).



Companies can get a free copy of Brake’s Busy Enough to Kill? DVD by attending the FREE training offered through the FedEx & Brake Road Safety Academy , or by signing up to Brake’s Fleet Safety Forum scheme.



To order free sample information sheets on road risk management produced by the Fleet Safety Forum, and receive information on free training provided by the FedEx & Brake Road Safety Academy, companies can call Brake on 01484 559909, email fleetsafetyforum@brake.org.uk, or go to www.brake.org.uk and click on ‘Fleet Safety Forum’.