BEING a small fleet doesn’t exempt SME companies from taking duty of care management seriously.
The duty of care obligation covers those drivers in cars owned or leased by the business, as well as those using their private car on business (often called ‘grey’ fleet).
Driver risk must be correctly managed to ensure duty of care and legal obligations under the:
- Health and Safety at Work Act 1974,
- Road Traffic Act 1988, and the
- Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007.
Overlooking aspects of SME fleet duty of care or not keeping adequate records can have significant legal, financial, and reputational consequences.
Yet new research from leasing provider Alphabet shows that a third of fleet managers have little to no knowledge of corporate duty of care.
And less than half (45%) considered they had a good understanding of how duty of care applied to their fleet.