Companies introducing road risk strategies are facing reluctance from grey fleet drivers reluctant to supply personal information and vehicle data.

Latest figures from the HMRC suggest that there are up to four million grey fleet cars - privately-owned cars being driven for business - with numbers high in the public sector.

Some of the biggest employee protests have come at heavily unionised employers, despite the TUC backing occupational road risk management policies.

“The TUC view is important because many businesses are unionised,” explained Ian Smith, who recently introduced Fleet Support Group’s (FSG) RiskMaster initiative at Unison.

“Employees should be reminded of the TUC view and the fact that the union they belong to is affiliated to the TUC which supports occupational road risk management.”

FSG’s RiskMaster won the 2009 Fleet News award for best safety initiative for its comprehensive programme of addressing risk, including grey fleet risk.

FSG chairman Geoffrey Bray said: “Opposition to measures to improve road safety among at-work drivers must be overcome.

"We need to change some employees’ attitudes towards road safety.

"Compliance with all company policies and procedures should be written into employment contracts.”

Public service trade union Unison overcame its members’ concerns over the introduction of RiskMaster through a series of meetings and communications.

However, at-work drivers who fail to comply with fleet operators’ requests to provide personal data could find themselves in court facing a charge under the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act if they are involved in a crash.

“Individual members of staff have an obligation to keep themselves safe,” explained Kevin Basnett, specialist employment lawyer at Goughs Solicitors.

“Staff who have been consistently asked by their employer to comply with reasonable requests for information to enable them to meet their best practice compliance obligations and are then involved a crash, perhaps because they are using a mobile phone, could be prosecuted under the Act.”

Employees found guilty under the Act face a maximum two years’ jail, an unlimited fine or both.