Do you know the background of your van drivers? If not, then you could be in for trouble, argues Avis Easteal, general manager of Experian Background Checking

Employees who spend their days driving to visit customers and suppliers can be the source of significant risk, both to those they interact with and the company they represent.

Recruiting the right person for the job is essential for the success and reputation of a business – but how do you know you are selecting applicants who not only can perform the role they have applied for, but are actually who they say they are?

Whichever sector a fleet business is in, there are potential risks – and these can become business critical if an employee defrauds or commits a criminal offence while on the road unsupervised.

The goods being held in the commercial vehicle can also be a potential area of risk for theft.

Any business that requires an employee to visit customers in their homes needs to be safe in the knowledge that their representatives will behave within the law and as the company expects.

People are rightly wary of letting strangers into their homes and it is the brand of who they represent that can gain them admittance.

Consumers are therefore placing their trust and personal safety in the company’s selection of employees.

Companies have to be careful who has access to money, goods, data or personal assets and with the recession putting more people under financial stress, it is no surprise that record numbers of internal fraud cases are reaching the courts.

The best time to mitigate the risk of fraud and other criminal behaviour is at the recruitment stage.

At this point, it is vital to confirm that they are who they say they are and that they have a clean and valid driving licence.

It is also, however, important that the employer seeks to undertake both a criminal record and financial check, to help ensure that they are not putting those the employee would come into contact with in undue danger and that they are aware of any financial stress the employee is under which could make them more vulnerable to temptation or coercion.

The recession is making recruitment checks more stringent across all sectors.

This has been demonstrated in increasing demand for Experian’s candidate screening services over the first quarter of 2009, despite the sharp drop in recruitment levels.

Increasing demand for criminal record and adverse financial checks demonstrate that employers are looking beyond traditional referencing techniques in their candidate due diligence.

By having proof of the legal and working history of a candidate, employers are better placed to make decisions that reduce the risk to their business in terms of financial growth, corporate liability and reputation.

Companies can outsource these checks to specialist firms that have all the necessary data access and permission to perform these checks.

It is also important that you let your potential candidates know that these checks are being carried out and gain their permission to do so.