New road death figures should not be excuse for fleet risk complacency, says CFC

New figures that show road deaths are at the lowest level ever recorded should not cause fleets to treat the issue of safety with complacency – but are instead are probable sign that their risk policies are working.

Department for Transport statistics show that the number of people killed in road deaths in 2010 fell to 1,857 – a reduction of 16% on the previous year and the lowest since figures were first compiled in 1926.

Other figures for the same period were similarly encouraging. A total of 22,660 people were reported killed or seriously injured, a fall of 8%, while there were 208,655 casualties – including slight injuries, serious injuries and fatalities - which means a reduction of 6%.

Neville Briggs, managing director at CFC, said: “These are excellent figures but should not be seen as a sign that fleets can start to relax when it comes to the issue of safety. Instead, there is a strong possibility that the risk management policies that have been adopted in recent years have made a contribution to these results.”

Briggs said that many of the companies that CFC dealt with as users of its Licence Link licence checking software and other fleet management products had created a genuine safety culture during the last few years.

He explained: “There are, of course, fleets for whom risk management remains a box ticking exercise but there are many others that have generated a high level of interest in the subject of safety at all levels from management to drivers.

“It is now eight years since the ground breaking ‘Driving at Work’ fleet risk guidance was released by the Health and Safety Executive and during that time fleet treatment of the issue of safety has changed beyond all recognition. The challenge now is to play a part in driving the figures for death and injury on the roads lower still.”