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It has been estimated that up to a third of all road traffic accidents involve somebody who is at work at the time. Consequently, in addition to road traffic law requirements, (valid MOT certificates for vehicles and drivers holding valid drivers licences,) there are extra factors to be taken into consideration.
These fall into two main areas:
Laboratory studies have shown that sleep does not occur without warning. Drivers who fall asleep at the wheel first reach the stage of fighting off drowsiness and perhaps attempt to combat this by opening a window or turning up the radio; however, this doesn't always work. Instead, employees should be instructed to:
Mobile phones are often used at work. They can have benefits for safety, efficiency and convenience of employers and employees. Employers have legal duties to protect the health and safety of their employees. The Health and Safety Executive advises employers that they should instruct staff not to use mobile phones while driving (using a hand-held mobile phone while driving is an offence), or doing anything else where safety is important and their use might interfere with concentration.
Where employers require staff to use a mobile phone and concerns about possible health impacts are raised, employers could respond by, for example:
