Employee road safety FAQs
Am I responsible for my employees driving to and from their place of work?
If the employee does not normally drive on business, is based at one location and is just commuting from their home to their place of work then the answer is NO.
What should I do if an employee has points on their licence?
As long as they are below the limit from being banned they are allowed to drive, however if you have doubts about their ability to drive safely you can prohibit them from driving until they can prove that they are not putting themselves or others at risk. You can engage a recognised driver skills company to test the individual.
Am I responsible for paying my employees business insurance?
It depends what was agreed at the time of employment. Normally a company who expects an employee to use their own vehicle whilst driving on company business pays the difference in the insurance.
Who is responsible for the upkeep of a company car? I have problems with employees who don’t take them in for their service on time and who don’t check tyres, lights etc on a regular basis.
Employees of company vehicles must be reminded that whilst a vehicle is in their charge they have legal responsibilities for the vehicle being roadworthy. Employees who disregard this should be disciplined by their manager. If they are persistent offenders then the privilege of the vehicle should be removed.
Some employees take an allowance and purchase their own car for “business use”. Are we still responsible for the road worthiness of these vehicles?
Under health & safety law, employers have the same duty of care to employees driving their own vehicles on company business as they do for company owned or leased vehicles. By insisting that they service their vehicle annually and provide documentation of this and any other relevant safety requirements such as MOT certificates you are showing that you are assessing the risks and ensuring that the vehicle is fit for purpose. You should also remind all drivers about the need for daily and periodic vehicle condition checks.
