RISK management is dominating the agenda of fleet chiefs as pressure mounts to slash accident rates. Members of the Association of Car Fleet Operators, South West and Wales, have called on fleet managers to get tough and impose stringent risk management policies.

Key decision-makers gave the thumbs-up to a discussion document by the influential Work-Related Road Safety Task Group, which calls on companies and fleets to take a leading role in deciding how the industry can cut accident rates. The document was published by the Health and Safety Executive after research revealed between 25% and 33% of fatalities in road accidents could involve at-work drivers.

The issues raised for debate are whether the risk management approach is correct, how a balance can be struck between employers' and employees' responsibilities, whether there are more radical solutions, how attitudes can be changed, how small firms can be persuaded to be more proactive towards safety, how to enforce safety standards and how accident statistics can be monitored more closely.

Catherine Gardner, fleet sales manager at Gloucester-based Warner's Peugeot, and secretary of the region, said: 'A key issue discussed at the meeting was the importance for members to have a handbook for drivers, which should have details of risk and health and safety. It is critical that drivers should sign a receipt stating they had read and understood the handbook.' She added that members believed an ACFO designed hand-book for fleets would be invaluable and that it was in the process of putting one together with the help of national fleet operators.