WHSmith’s 1,100 at-work drivers have been issued with ‘permits to drive’ as part of a web-enabled RiskMaster programme from Fleet Support Group.

Employees who drive a company vehicle, who drive their own vehicle on business or who are occasional drivers are now only granted a permit after passing a series of checks, including a DVLA licence check.

An online driving test is then used to profile drivers, grading them as low, medium or high risk, with the assessment used as the basis for any driver training.

Vehicle maintenance records, insurance details, MoT and VED records, and any data on crashes and motoring offences are also fed into the system.

Each driver is then scored and continually assessed, and if a trigger point is reached the ultimate sanction can be the withdrawal of their permit to drive.

WHSmith’s own specific parameters are pre-fed into the system and drivers have to reapply for a permit annually.
Monthly mileage expenses are only paid to those with a permit.

Mark Sabin, risk and audit director at Fleet Support Group, said: “We are confident that we will see future ongoing reductions in our insurance-related costs and vehicle maintenance charges.”