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  • November 25, 2024

  • Sara Davies

  • Driver Articles

If you drive vehicles or ride powered two-wheelers (or bicycles) on the road as part of your work activity, you have some obligations to take reasonable care for your own health and safety and that of other people who may be affected by your actions.

Your employer is also required to manage your health and safety risks (though this article focuses mainly on your obligations as a driver). Both your company’s legal obligations, as well as yours, apply to work activities out and about on the roads as well as on fixed sites.

Employer Health and Safety Responsibilities

Your employer has specific duties to protect you including:

  • Providing you with relevant training
  • Planning safe journeys for you
  • Maintaining your safety
  • Protecting your health and wellbeing

To find out more on this topic, visit our guide to duty of care for employers.

Employee Health and Safety Responsibilities

Your responsibilities as an employee include:

1. Taking Reasonable Care of Your Own Health and Safety

 Other people may be affected by your actions while driving for work. As an example, driving tired could cause an accident. You therefore have a duty to make sure you don’t drive tired and to tell your employer if you have health conditions or if you’re taking medication that may affect your ability to drive. Taking responsibility for your health while driving includes:

Taking regular breaks - The Highway Code states that “a minimum break of at least 15 minutes after every two hours of driving is recommended”. If you drive a goods vehicle or a bus or coach you must follow these rules on how many hours you can drive and the breaks that you need to take here. Read our handy article for more information regarding breaks while driving.

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Reporting medication use – For prescription drugs, some employers will have policies in place ensuring drivers notify their line manager if they begin a course of medication. You are always legally obliged to tell your employer if you are taking medication that may affect your ability to drive. There may also be a testing process that covers all employees which may include random drug testing for certain drugs and alcohol. A positive test will normally be taken as gross misconduct.

Informing DVLA of certain health conditions - You must tell DVLA if you have a driving licence and you develop a ‘notifiable’ medical condition or disability or if a condition or disability has got worse since you got your licence. Notifiable conditions include diabetes, epilepsy, glaucoma and heart conditions, among others.

The DVLA provides detailed guidance on various conditions and the requirements for reporting them.

What happens if I notify the DVLA of a medical condition?

When you report a medical issue to the DVLA, you’ll be asked to complete the appropriate form related to your specific medical condition, found on the DVLA’s website. The form requires detailed information about your medical condition, treatment, and how it affects your ability to drive. Once you have submitted the form, the DVLA reviews your case. They may contact your GP or any specialists involved in your treatment to get more information about your condition.

In some cases, they might ask you to undergo a medical examination or a driving assessment. Based on the information and reports, the DVLA will make a decision which can range from allowing you to retain your licence without any restrictions, to issuing a licence for a shorter period (which might require regular medical assessments), or requiring certain adaptations to your vehicle. In some cases, they might opt to revoke your licence.

What happens if I don’t report a notifiable medical condition?

If you’ve developed any medical condition or disability that could affect your driving, you must tell the DVLA. If you don’t report a condition to the DVLA that affects your driving, you can be fined up to £1,000. In addition, if you’re involved in an accident as a result of your condition, you could face serious legal ramifications.

Should I inform my Fleet Manager of a medical condition?

Your company policy may request that you notify your Fleet Manager of medical conditions but you should check the procedure with them if in doubt. Regardless of the official policy, we strongly recommend that if your ability to drive is affected by a medical condition or any other factor, you inform your Fleet Manager immediately. And you are always legally obliged to tell your employer if you are taking medication that may affect your ability to drive.

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2. Participating in Health and Safety Practices

You must co-operate with your employer’s policy, including participating in any necessary health and safety training and instruction. It is your responsibility to use any vehicle provided in line with the training you receive. This may include undergoing regular driver training and cooperating with requests for checks on your driving licence, eyesight, eyesight correction and any checks regarding medical conditions. Requirements for medical screening and/or examination of employees are normally contained in their written contract of employment.

3. Alerting Management if Vehicle Malfunctions or is Damaged

You must inform your fleet manager promptly if your vehicle is damaged or malfunctioning, or if any warning lights appear on your dashboard.

4. Carrying Out Regular Maintenance Checks

You must carry out checks in accordance with your company’s maintenance policies as required to make sure your vehicle is safe to use on the road. It is likely that you will be required to carry out a number of checks on your vehicle on a monthly basis. Read our article on driver maintenance checks to find out more.

You should also understand who is responsible for the servicing, insurance and  MOT and meet any obligations required of you. Usually on a maintained vehicle, the servicing and MOT will be taken care of, but you still may have to complete regular VMCs (Vehicle Maintenance Checks) so ensure you fully understand the set up in your place of work. Here at Wessex fleet, our maintenance programmes include a system for drivers whereby they can login and find out what VMCs are due on their vehicles via our app or online at www.wessexfleet.co.uk/mobile/.

How to complete Wessex Fleet VMCs online

You will need to update the current mileage and then follow the simple process of checking each part of the vehicle as prompted and ticking the related box on the app to say the check has been completed. If you do spot anything of concern or have comments, there is an additional notes box to fill in. Once completed and submitted, you will receive a copy of the report.

Your internal fleet managers will see monthly compliance rates for the VMCs on the front page of their corporate log in page. Wessex Fleet will send a monthly reminder asking you to log on and complete the necessary checks.

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