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Fleet Managers could Face Penalties for Employee’s Offences
25 September 2020
The Licence Bureau, supplier of driver licence validation services, is warning fleet managers that they are ultimately responsible for the actions of their drivers, meaning they could be liable for driving offences committed by these employees.
This warning has been noticed in light of a recent spike in offences committed by employed drivers, the majority of which are ‘dual penalty recipient’ relating to ‘causing or permitting using a vehicle uninsured against third party risks’ which can incur six to eight penalty points. Under the ‘cause or permit to drive’ legislation, fleet managers could receive the same amount of penalty points on their own personal driving licence as the employee that commits the offence.
Steve Pinchen, Sales Director of Licence Bureau, said, “This much unknown rule has some very serious implications indeed for individuals and businesses alike.
“Those responsible for business fleets – of any scale – really do need to do their homework and ensure that they have all bases covered when it comes to compliance. Not only that, but there is a cultural aspect here too where everyone must be attuned to minimising road safety risk.
“Beyond the actual penalty points there are the knock-on implications for elevated risk profiles within the business and what that might mean for insurance premiums; professional and personal impacts for fleet managers; as well as potential for reputational damage for the company.”
It is stated within the Road Traffic Act of 1988/1991 that, in short, ownership of a vehicle involved in an offence is irrelevant, which therefore implicates both owned business fleet and grey fleet operators. The Act also states that causing or permitting driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence can incur three to six points with fine up to £1,000.
We hope that you find this information useful. If you would like to learn more about how we assist our clients with risk management, please call us on 01480 414541.
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