A new campaign warns that employers may face legal action if they fail to provide first aid training for staff who drive for work.
The Driving Down Inequality initiative by Driver First Assist (DFA) highlights gaps in health and safety provision for road-based workers compared with office staff. While site-based employees often receive formal first aid training, many professional and grey fleet drivers do not.
DFA’s chief executive, David Higginbottom, stressed that employers have a moral and legal duty to protect all workers, wherever they operate. The campaign cites Health and Safety Executive (HSE) data showing that one in three road deaths involves someone driving for work, and calls for mandatory first aid training for all work drivers and updated HSE guidance.
Alison Moriarty, Fleet-safety expert and MD at Beverley Bell Consulting & Training, added: “Driving is a work activity; not ensuring your drivers are safe and legal exposes you to the same potential prosecutions as any other health and safety breach.”