A NEW safe driving award has been launched by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents to encourage company car drivers to take more care on the road. Research has shown that around a quarter of the deaths on the road are linked to vehicles being driven for work purposes.

The new award, part of the National Safe Driver Award Scheme which has been running since 1918, was launched by RoSPA on Tuesday as companies were warned that for every £1 of accident damage costs they probably lost £8 in staff and administration costs and lost production time. Kevin Birch, RoSPA development manager (driver services), said: 'Companies could save millions of pounds simply by encouraging their staff to drive more safely and thanking them through an awards scheme, which they can adapt to include their own rewards as well.'

The NSDA scheme works by companies sending in a list of all drivers, whose records are then kept, while RoSPA sends out driving manuals and road safety publications. Each year, if the drivers have no blameworthy accidents or convictions, each driver will receive a certificate. There are special awards for certain milestones, with a merit award after five years, bronze after 10 years, silver after 15 years, gold after 20 years and diamond after 25 years. After 35 years accident free motoring the driver receives an engraved crystal chalice.