Author: Simon Pavey

This is the fifth in a series of articles written with our partners at FleetCheck to help business owners and managers understand their legal requirements around managing staff that drive for work.

Health and Safety at Work legislation requires any organisation with 5 or more employees to conduct a written risk assessment of all their business activities – and this includes driving for work.

Procedures then need to be put in place to minimise those risks, and that’s normally done through a Driving for Work policy.

Your driving for work policy sets out the standards of behaviour expected of your drivers, and it provides the framework for managing how well these standards are followed.

What should a driving for work policy include?

A good policy will include:

• A policy statement that explains to drivers why the policy exists and why it’s important they follow it.
• Details of any driver checks to be carried out such as driving licences and medical checks.
• Guidance on vehicle management and maintenance to ensure the vehicles are roadworthy at all times, and faults are fixed quickly.
• Drivers’ hours and fatigue management to ensure excessive work patterns don’t create additional risks.
• Driver distraction including the use of mobile phones while driving.
• Drug and alcohol impairment.
• What to do following an accident or breakdown to minimise anxiety and panic to ensure the correct procedures are followed.

It will also set out any training requirements and show how the organisation will deal with those who don’t follow the rules.

It is a requirement that a named Director has personal responsibility for the policy. This responsibility includes ensuring that it’s comprehensive and up to date, that it’s communicated appropriately to all staff, and that procedures are in place to monitor compliance.

Your driving for work policy needs to be reviewed and amended periodically. From time to time, new legislation may be introduced, or existing legislation updated, plus the business may grow or diversify into new areas with new or different risks. Ideally the policy would be reviewed annually.

The latest version then needs to be signed and dated by the director responsible and communicated effectively to all relevant employees.

Communicating policy

Having gone to the trouble of creating your policy, it’s obvious that if the policy is not communicated effectively to all staff then they’ll not be in a position to follow its guidance.

Simply having a copy on a shelf in the office, or buried within the company intranet, is not sufficient. It must be communicated to all drivers – and that includes those who may use their own car for work journeys – they are still driving on behalf of the business and the rules apply to them too.

In the case of other policies, such as mobile phone use, the rules may need to be explained to other relevant staff who may have cause to phone a colleague whilst driving.

In a recent survey carried out on behalf of the National Highways Driving for Better Business programme, it was found that 1 in every 6 employees who drive for work said they’d been involved in an incident due to a phone call from a colleague.

You will also need to ensure that the policy is built into your staff induction or onboarding process. New staff will copy the behaviour of more experienced employees so, when new team members join, go through the policy with them and explain the importance of safe driving.

If the policy is working, they’ll see other staff putting it into practice.

One of the most effective ways of communicating policy is through a driver handbook. Your handbook might include your whole policy or instead focus on some key elements with additional safety advice and guidance as a way of supporting and reinforcing the policy.

Have your drivers agreed to the rules?

You will also need to keep records to show that this has been done. You should be able to show that all your drivers have

• Received the policy
• Read the policy
• Understood the policy
• Agree to abide by the policy

You may have given your employee a copy of the policy when they joined, and provided them with a driver handbook, but it is good practice to remind them of its contents from time to time.

It is increasingly common that line managers are required to discuss Driving for Work issues with drivers at their annual appraisals. This might involve discussing any collisions, failure to carry out vehicle checks or reports of poor driving, but is also an opportunity to refresh their memory on company policy.

You could also look to issue timely reminders on safe driving guidance such as winter driving advice, vehicle checks, and the use of mobile phones whilst driving.

The key benefits of creating and communicating a comprehensive driving for work policy in place include:

• Clearly defined rules that reduce the level of driver risk.
• Drivers knowing what’s expected of them and understand why the rules are in place.
• Drivers that are more likely to behave as you’d want them to.
• A clear framework for disciplining drivers that don’t follow the rules.

If you would like more information on how to manage a safe and compliant fleet, including writing and communicating a driving for work policy, check out our FleetCheck service here.

From operating trucks and excavators to transporting materials between sites, there can be no understating how integral fuel is to the success of the construction industry. And for millions of SMEs in the UK, fuel is one of the most significant operating costs to contend with.

Fortunately, there’s also no shortage of ways in which fleets can cut back on some of these costs without scaling back on projects and investments. That’s exactly what we’re going to dive into in this article, in which we’ll be analysing how fleet managers within construction can improve their operations across the board.

Construction costs: what are the heavy hitters?

It’s no secret that diesel is the lifeblood of the UK’s construction industry. It fuels virtually all heavy-duty vehicles and is estimated to account for over 90% of fuel usage. Amongst the biggest fuel guzzlers are:

• Diggers
• Excavators
• Bulldozers
• Trucks
• Front loaders

A typical excavator will use between two to five gallons of fuel per hour, and at just over £5 per gallon of diesel – that could mean paying out £270 to run your excavator over a 10 hour work period.

Of course, the exact cost will vary depending on machinery, fuel efficiency, and how vehicles are used – but there’s clearly a sizeable bill attached to every construction job. What solutions are there, then, to reduce bills?

Shouldn’t construction businesses just go electric?

There isn’t a construction business in the UK that isn’t aware of the country’s drive toward Net Zero. It seems entirely possible that the construction landscape will look fully electric in 50 years’ time – and going electric now could be an effective way of slashing fuel bills.

The government’s advisory fuel rates (as of July 2023) suggest that Diesel costs around 18 pence per mile, whereas the electric rate sits at 9 pence per mile for fully electric vehicles.

Slashing your fuel bill in half by going electric could be a smart move- but it may only be desirable for construction businesses with the capital available to comfortably manage vehicle acquisition costs. The Road to Zero strategy actually provides some exemptions for non-electric HGV sales that allow a little more leniency for construction businesses than domestic road users.

So, if the shift toward electric vehicles does end up being a little slower for construction businesses, what realistic steps can be taken in the meantime to cut costs?

Reduce the cost of fuel per mile

The business model behind fuel cards is extremely simple. Fuel card providers such as Fuel Card Services have pre-negotiated deals with fuel giants such as Shell and Esso that enable savings to be made at a huge scale, covering the entire country.

A construction business could purchase a fuel card, pay for all fuel at the pump using that card, and receive a discount on every mile. It’s a sure-fire way to reduce costs quickly and it could really help to bring down that diesel bill.

You can also track all of your fuel expenditure via one account. This empowers fleet managers with smart insights that can inform decision making.

Cutting costs is essential for many businesses in the current climate, and one other good option is making efficiencies.

What role could new technology play?

Upgrading your fleet’s technology stack could be a clever way of boosting the efficiency of your fleet in the short to medium-term. Deploying a suite of fleet management tools can equip you with new data sets that enable you to analyse your operations rationally.

For example, utilising a telematics system could enable you to track your vehicles, optimise routes, and give more realistic deadlines on projects by knowing exactly where your team is. Our fully bespoke systems are supported by a UK team – and can be fully customised to your operations.

If you would like to learn more about the services we have on offer, or are unsure what you could benefit from then get in touch via our quick enquiry form today.

If you are thinking of buying or leasing a company van or are looking to expand your fleet of vans, now is a great time to get to grips with or brush up on your understanding of company van ‘mechanics’. From taxing your vans and insuring them to ensuring you pick the right van for your requirements, there are lots of moving parts to consider.

In this guide, we’ll give you the low down on how company van tax and insurance works and will offer some key points to look out for that can help you to pick the right vehicles for your business and your drivers.

What counts as a company van?

Defining between a company car and a company van is vital to ensure that you are abiding by the right tax and insurance expectations. These fleet vehicles have different implications for businesses and HMRC has strict definitions of each which means mistakes can be expensive.

Three key criteria are usually required to be met for a vehicle to be considered a van:

1. It is intended for the transportation of goods rather than people.
2. It has a fully loaded weight of no more than 3,500kg.
3. It has no windows in the load-bearing area of the vehicle.

There are some additional factors that might define a vehicle as a van, such as some larger taxi vehicles with certain goods loading capacities. If your fleet requires vehicles that aren’t clearly defined as vans by the first three criteria, then take care to fully clarify what type of fleet vehicle you are acquiring and what it means for tax and insurance.

Considerations and advantages of a company van for tax

Purchasing vans for company use can bring with it some significant savings. For example, you can reclaim the full amount of VAT on purchased commercial vehicles, which means a saving of 20% on vans bought for commercial use only.

However, there are some things to consider regarding the tax benefits of company vans that are important for both employer and employee to understand.

Company van Benefit in Kind

Are your drivers going to be using these company vans exclusively on the job, or will they be driving them for personal purposes? If the latter is the case, then your company vans might be subject to a BIK tax. It’s important that your employees are aware that the responsibility of BIK falls on them.

Cars and vans are both taxed as benefits in kind in this circumstance, though there are differences to how the tax is calculated. For information of BIK tax on company cars you can read our company car tax guide.

Company van BIK is a flat rate fee that currently stands at £3,960 per annum for 2023/24, and increase from £3,600 for the previous tax year. There are also additional leniencies that company van drivers can benefit from that company car drivers can’t, for example certain short personal errands are permissible without incurring this taxation.

Company van fuel benefit

In addition to company van benefit in kind, employees driving company vans might also be subject to fuel benefit. This applies when the employer covers the cost of fuel used for private use unless the vehicle is electric. This tax is set at £757 for 2023/34.

Electric company vans

Electric vans offer several tax saving opportunities that can help increase the viability of the shift from combustion engines to EVs. To begin, there is no road tax payable for fully electric vehicles, incentivising their uptake.

Additionally, as of 2021 electric vans qualify for 100% first year allowances, meaning that the full cost can be deducted from profits before tax. For 2022, that meant a saving of 19% against corporation tax.

How does company van insurance work?

Company van insurance or business van insurance will cover use of your van for work-related purposes, which can include commuting. The right company van insurance will also offer cover for the contents of your company van, which is essential for businesses that use these vehicles for the transportation of tools and equipment.

Like most vehicle insurance, company van insurance comes at three levels of coverage:

• Third-party
• Third-party, fire and theft
• Fully comprehensive

In addition to these fundamental types of cover, there will be insurance suppliers that offer company van insurance built to fit the needs of certain business types. Taking the time to assess all options to ensure you are finding the right type for your niche could help you avoid missing the best insurance deals and get the best coverage for your requirements.

Other things to consider

If you haven’t already got vans in your vehicle fleet, there are some other things worth considering as you begin the process of acquisition.

How old do you have to be to drive a company van?

If your staff hold a full UK driving license and are over the age of 17 then they can drive a company van. Whilst businesses such as van rentals have stricter terms on who can drive vans, for businesses building their own fleet it is only required that drivers hold the appropriate license, which for driving vans can be held from age 17.

Do you need a particular license to drive a van?

The standard driver license or category B license is sufficient to drive a van up to 3,500kg max loaded weight. If you need to drive a vehicle with a higher maximum load, up to 7,500kg, you will need to pass the C1 driving test.

Telematics for your van fleet from Fuel Card Services

Starting or expanding your fleet is a great prospect for business scaling and can open a lot of doors. Make sure you can manage your vehicle fleet, whatever vehicles it is comprised of, with telematics that are built to fit.

Tele-Gence is a leading fleet telematics service that is fully flexible and buildable, meaning you can create a telematics service that is shaped round your business and fleet. With a range of additional tools such as dash cams that can be added to your service, you can send your fleet out and confidently track drivers, capture incidents, and manage fuel use effectively; tools that can be invaluable should you need to make a claim.

You can learn more about Tele-Gence here or enquire today and our team will be in touch to help you out.

This is the fourth in a series of articles written with our partners at FleetCheck to help business owners and managers understand their legal requirements around managing staff that drive for work.

Employers have a responsibility to make appropriate checks to ensure anyone they ask to drive for work is legally able and competent to do so. It sounds obvious but many don’t.

The Road Traffic Act 1988 states that it’s an offence for a driver to drive without a valid licence. The Act also states that it is an offence for a person or organisation to permit a driver to drive without a valid licence. Having a robust system in place to check drivers’ licences will help prevent you hiring someone who isn’t eligible to drive for you.

The first and most obvious checks are to see if they have a valid driving licence, if they have any penalty points, and whether they are eligible to drive the class of vehicle required.

The checks will also highlight if drivers need glasses or have any other medical issues that may affect their ability to drive.

The consequence of failing to carry out driver checks

Typically, a driver will have their licence suspended if they get to 12 penalty points, however, a driver can argue in court that losing their licence would cause undue hardship and request that they be allowed to continue driving with more than 12 points.

Previous Freedom of Information (FOI) requests sent to the DVLA show that there are thousands of drivers in the UK driving around, quite legally, with more than 12 points on their licence.

Following one such request by MotorEasy, the DVLA provided figures (accurate as of April 2021) showing 8,237 drivers with more than 12 points and one person still driving legally with a staggering 68 penalty points on their licence!

Another FOI request, this time from IAM RoadSmart, yielded data from the DVLA (data supplied in December 2020) showing over 92,000 drivers with 9-11 penalty points – within one offence of a ban.

An example that illustrates this risk perfectly involves a man who, having racked up 54 points, convinced a judge to let him keep his licence in order to look for work as a mobile tyre fitter – work which would entail some unwitting employer entrusting him with a shiny company van and tools worth in the region of £40,000. Failure to check licences therefore leaves you open to hiring people like this.

The checks will also highlight whether drivers need glasses or have any other medical issues that may affect their ability to drive.

What should an initial driver check include?

During the initial hiring process, the first driver checks should include

• Licence checks – penalty points
• Eyesight and medical checks
• Vehicle category eligibility
• Insurance for business use (if they drive their own car for work)
• Policy receipt and acceptance (discussed previously)
• Induction training

Ongoing driver checks

Having made your initial driver checks to ensure your drivers are all correctly licensed and medically fit to drive, it’s important to maintain those checks over time.

For all the same reasons we don’t want to employ an unsuitable driver, we need to keep the checks up to date to make sure none slip through the net later on while they’re working for us.

Every year, tens of thousands of drivers have their licences revoked for a variety of offences, while tens of thousands more have to surrender their licence for medical reasons. Regular checks will pick these up.

Licences should be checked at least annually directly with the DVLA. Many employers check licences more regularly if drivers have accumulated points, or introduce thresholds – for example, some companies check drivers with a certain number of points, or those that driver higher mileages, on a more regular basis.

Your ongoing management of drivers should include

• Licence Checks including penalty points, eyesight and medical checks and vehicle category eligibility
• Receipt and acceptance of any driving for work policy updates
• Delivery of any training requirements
• Collision or incident record
• Driving offences and fines
• And also any complaints or disciplinary action taken against the driver

The point of an ongoing driver record keeping system is to ensure you do everything you need to do in order to meet your legal obligations, keep your drivers safe and protect the business in the event of an incident – and that all of these things are recorded as they happen.

This is important when communicating policy updates or where additional training is required. If your drivers are in specialist vehicles, carrying heavy loads or towing, then it provides a vital record that any additional training that was required has been successfully delivered.

It is even more important where high-risk drivers, such as those with multiple speeding offences or a poor collision record, need to be identified and action taken.

Ongoing driver management: beyond licence checks

Remember, comprehensive driver record-keeping will help you:

• Meet your legal requirements for driver management
• Quickly identify higher risk drivers
• Deliver appropriate training where required
• Ensure drivers are made aware of changes to policy
• Reduce reputational risk to the business

If you would like more information on how to manage a safe and compliant fleet, including driver record-keeping and licence checking, check out our FleetCheck service here.