Van safety: Loads of trouble in store for small fleet van drivers

It is a sad fact that while many of the UK’s big van fleet operators have robust health and safety policies in place, this vital area of fleet management is largely ignored among smaller businesses.

Whether it be lack of funds, short-sightedness or sheer ignorance is a matter of conjecture.

Even after the introduction of the Corporate Manslaughter Act last year and the revised Health and Safety (Offences) Act earlier this year, which threaten bosses with fines and jail in the event of a major accident in the workplace (which includes vehicles themselves), the majority of small fleets still put their employees at unnecessary risk on the roads.

There are a number of areas that should be receiving attention, including speeding, using mobile phones on the road, eyesight tests and drivers’ hours. But how many small fleet operators give a thought to the actual loading of their vans?

Look in the rear end of any Transit and you’ll probably find piles of tools, heavy equipment and other detritus lying about unfettered that could all cause serious injury or even death in the event of an accident.

It’s termed ‘secondary injury’ – damage to bodies caused by flying objects. And the threat is very real.

Recent research by the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) showed that even a first aid kit in a metal box could cause a severe head injury in a crash if it isn’t locked away in the glovebox.

The issue has been taken up by the Freight Transport Association (FTA), which offers a booklet entitled ‘Safe Loading of Vans’, covering all aspects of loading and stowing.

An FTA spokesman said: “It was apparent that across the transport industry there was little or no guidance as to the reasonable expectation of how loads and their associated stowage should perform in accidents.

“While the incidence of injuries caused by loads in accidents is statistically very low, the consequence of trying to resolve this problem without guidance was giving grave concern
to people charged with providing solutions.

“It is necessary for operators and enforcement agencies to establish reliable, reasonable and above all practical guidance on these issues.”

Fleet News was recently invited to a TRL test day in which a badly-loaded van was crashed at 30mph, followed
by a properly-loaded van with racking provided by specialist firm Sortimo.

The results were a sobering reminder of what could happen in a worst-case scenario.

In the first crash test, a pallet of bricks, a generator, some road cones and tools and some DIY racking looked OK to start with. On the roof was a plastic tube carrier filled with copper piping and the whole load weighed 515kg, just about half the van’s official payload.

The vehicle was crashed at 30mph. The racking virtually disintegrated. The bricks were almost all broken in half. The whole load piled itself into the bulkhead, snapping it off and pushing it into the cab.

The plastic tube carrier snapped off and its contents went flying forwards, with potentially fatal consequences to passers-by.

A slow-motion film of the crash showed that the load had pushed itself into the back of the driver’s seat. As the driver was being restrained by the seatbelt, it is likely that he would have suffered major injury or even death.

In comparison, the second test seemed rather tame but was to show how much safer things could be when loads are restrained properly.

The racking was filled with various sized packages and there were some odd items such as traffic cones strapped in with proper restraining leashes.

As we examined the vehicle after the crash, it had hardly altered. The racking was slightly bent, but even the packets stayed put.

The pictures here should demonstrate the consequences of ignoring this important safety area.

Top Tips

Produce company guidelines on how to load and store equipment and tools.
Ensure that drivers are following policies.
Ensure that vehicles are adequately specified to carry the intended load.
Provide appropriate training for drivers.
Provide systems for restraining loads, equipment and tools.
Fit storage and racking that have been assessed for crash-worthiness.
Carry out risk assessments of equipment and cargo in terms of crash safety. Document the risks and counter-actions to mitigate the risks. Review and assess them on a regular basis.
Allow time for checks on tie-down points, lashing and netting systems.