Other drivers 'biggest threat' say fleet managers

The survey by Fleet News and National Car Rental showed that almost a quarter (24%) of fleet managers thought other motorists were the greatest risk to the safety of their employees while driving for business.

Mobile phones and other in-car distractions, such as sat-nav, were seen as slightly less of a threat overall, closely followed by pressure on drivers to meet work deadlines.

Only 11% of fleet managers felt that their own drivers' poor skills behind the wheel presented a major risk to their safety.

Norwich Union Risk Services (NURS) fleet risk specialist Steve Palmer commented: "It's interesting to see that other road users - a factor which is largely beyond the control of fleet managers - are seen as the biggest threat.

"Hopefully this is a sign that fleet managers are taking the issues they can control to task, such as driver distraction, fatigue and competence behind the wheel, rather than them simply dismissing road crashes as 'usually someone else's fault'."

The survey also showed that managing costs was the top concern for fleet managers, highlighted by 32% of those questioned, followed by risk management (30%).

Grey-fleet concerns

The so-called 'grey-fleet' was also highlighted as a major safety concern in a separate report from Fleet News.

The publication revealed that almost two out of 3 private vehicles driven on company business were "not safe to be on the road." It has been estimated that between one and three million privately-owned cars are used for work purposes.

An ongoing study by Total Motion found that almost 60% of the private vehicles were not properly maintained and around a third were not properly insured.

Just over 70% of maintenance problems identified were tyre-related and should have been picked up during basic safety checks. However, the vast majority (91%) of drivers admitted they did not carry out such checks, and 98% said their employers had failed to ask about them.

Simon Hill, managing director of Total Motion, told Fleet News: "It is clear the safety issues raised by private cars being used for business are not being addressed. Even where companies are introducing duty-of-care policies, they are failing to enforce them."