Agenda item

Council Fleet and Driving at Work - Use of Private Vehicles

Minutes:

Consideration was given to the development of the two new polices by People & Organisation Service that had been in collaboration with Highways and Environmental. Following initial consideration by Corporate Resources Overiview & Scrutiny Committee on 27 October 2021, both policies had been redrafted to incorporate a number of suggested amendments.   These polices had been subject to consultation with the relevant Trade Unions and their amendments had been incorporated where appropriate. 

 

The purpose of all staff policies and procedures was to clearly set out the behaviours, processes and procedures required of staff, how they can gain advice or support and, where applicable, the consequences of not adhering to the policy and/or procedure. 

 

Driving at Work- Council Fleet Policy

A Fleet and Driver Risk Management review had been conducted by a consultant on behalf of Zurich, the Council’s insurance company. Its main purpose was to review the Council’s policies and arrangements against best practice standards and to provide recommendations that assist with ensuring compliance, protecting our workforce from harm, and reducing the risk of incidents. 

 

A key recommendation of the Review was the introduction of a Driving at Work Policy with embedded Driver Agreement which provides “clear unambiguous expectation as to driving standards”.  The Driving at Work – Council Fleet Policy was one of a suite of initiatives aimed at standardising recording and compliance across the vehicle fleet and achieving driving standards which improve driver and passenger safety, the number of fleet related incidents and accidents. Other initiatives include the introduction of a driver training e-learning module and robust checking systems for vehicles and licences. 

 

The Driving at Work – Council Fleet Policy introduced:-

 

  • Driver/Plant Operator Agreement to be signed on an annual basis;
  • The requirement to inform their manager of any change in health or physical/sensory impairments and an annual health assessment
  • With cause drug and alcohol screening
  • Employee paying up to £250 contribution to insurance excess costs, following a disciplinary procedure, if the damage is caused as a result of their negligence or driving without due care and attention

 

Driving at Work - Use of Private Vehicle (Grey Fleet) Policy

The Driving at Work – Use of Private Vehicle (Grey Fleet) Policy set out the expectations of those employees who use their private vehicle for Council business purposes. An e-learning module would also be developed to complement the policy. 

 

The Driving at Work – Use of Private Vehicle (Grey Fleet) Policy introduces;

 

  • Private Vehicle user Declaration to be signed on an annual basis;
  • The requirement to inform their manager of any change in circumstances which may affect the use of a private vehicle for work purposes
  • With cause drug and alcohol screening
  • Employee confirming that their vehicle is roadworthy, is MOT certificated (where appropriate) and correctly insured for business purposes.

 

Following questions from the floor, it was AGREED to recommend the approval of the Driving at Work – Council Fleet Policy and Driving at Work

–Use of Private Vehicles (Grey Fleet) Policy by Cabinet subject to considering checking that private vehicles were roadworthy on the DVLA  website.

 

Supporting documents: