Arval teams up with vGroup to provide safety pack for van drivers

Arval has launched a new safety pack for drivers, which will be in the driver side door pocket of new vehicle deliveries to help support them in an emergency.

The pack has been created by vGroup International and includes a high-visibility jacket, heavy duty gloves, LED torch, a branded notepad and pen, ‘No Smoking’ sticker, vent air freshener, dashboard sticker highlighting Arval contact details and a ‘welcome’ printed card. 

Vicky Outram, product manager at Arval, said: “We receive great feedback from drivers about our new car packs, but recognise that van drivers have very specific needs. Because of this we tasked vGroup with producing a pack which meets the specific needs of these drivers and believe that the result is high quality and useful.”

vGroup International already provides around 300,000 roadside assistance and motoring first aid kits a year to more than 100 contract hire and leasing companies and brokers for fitment in new company cars and commercial vehicles.

James Nash, vGroup’s newly appointed managing director, said: “We have learned a lot from our experience in the medical industry and motor racing, where clear communication and interaction with the end user is vital in stressful times such as a road traffic accident.

”We believe it is no longer enough just to provide safety items, we must locate these accessories correctly within the vehicle for speed of use as every second is critical. vGroup, over the last 25 years, has been incredible in providing health and safety support for UK fleet drivers and that journey is evolving with the company totally committed to reducing death and injury on Britain’s roads which costs the economy more than £16 billion per year.”

David Higginbottom, founder and chief executive of Driver First Assist (DFA) - a vGroup International backed non-profit making organisation that trains professional drivers to provide life-saving first aid and manage the scene at a road traffic collision, prior to the arrival of the emergency services - said: “This is a great initiative, providing drivers with the necessary equipment to help themselves and others at the scene of a road traffic collision. DFA is already working with vGroup to train drivers in road-related lifesaving skills and ‘products in situ’ will prove to be a vital additional tool in this field.”