Drug-driving trend a concern for fleets, says FleetCheck

Drug-driving was a bigger problem than drink-driving in some constabularies over the Christmas period.

Chief Constable Jo Shiner, of the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC), says that there is a "social acceptance" of drug taking and driving, particularly among younger people, and that some forces made more arrests than for drink-driving during December.

Peter Golding, managing director at FleetCheck says the trend is a warning to fleets who needed to ensure that employees realised that a zero-tolerance culture was in place.

“Generally, drink-driving has now become completely unacceptable socially but there are some signs that the same is not necessarily true of certain drugs, especially when it comes to people in their 20s, 30s and even 40s,” he said.  

“Many people do not realise that drugs such as cannabis tend to stay in the system for a much longer time than alcohol.

“An employee could be using these drugs socially on a Friday or Saturday and then climb into a car or van on Monday morning and be unaware that they are unsafe to drive.”

Golding suggests drug-driving is an area where fleets need to redouble their efforts to ensure that drivers are educated about the dangers of drug use and driving, and that anyone convicted will lose their jobs.

He continued: “There is an assumption by some employers that use of illegal drugs among drivers is very limited but there are increasing signs this maybe untrue.

“It appears that legal drugs prescribed for medical use and those taken for recreational purposes are both potential issues.

“Arguably, these are two different problems that require quite different approaches from fleet managers in terms of the actions taken.

“Medication is something that needs to be declared and checked to ensure that employees are safe to drive; illegal drugs mean educating drivers about the risk and adopting a zero-tolerance approach.”