Fleets warned as driving standards fall

Venson Automotive Solutions is urging fleet managers and company car drivers to focus on their driving as they head back out on to the road.

Results from a recent survey, conducted by the leasing company, have highlighted an increase in negative driver behaviour, with more than half (55%) of respondents believing there has been a rise in speeding by road users.

The survey also found an increase in discourteous and dangerous habits, as less use of indicators by other vehicle drivers was mentioned by 41% of people surveyed, 38% said they saw an increase in drivers not adhering to recommended distances between cars on motorways and 31% commented on general erratic driving behaviour.

More than one in three respondents (35%) said they believed that generally all road users – including cars, vans and bicycles had become more discourteous.

Simon Staton, client management director at Venson, said: “For company car or van drivers, penalty points and the possibility of losing their licence is serious enough but if a vehicle is being driven erratically or dangerously and is displaying the organisation’s logo or name, it can have an immediate impact on the perception of that business by other road users and pedestrians.

“Fleet managers need to ensure that there is adequate driver training and support for employees who drive company vehicles, with clear guidelines to make certain that drivers have enough time to complete their journeys safely.”

Over 2.3 million drivers are fined each year for speeding, making it the UK’s top driving offence.

Recently, West Yorkshire recorded the highest number of speeding offences in the UK with 181,864, followed by Avon and Somerset (159,210) and Thames Valley (145,447), figures from Moneybard from Department for Transport (DfT) show.

During lockdown, police forces across the UK have caught drivers speeding, with one driver breaking the legal limit by 81mph and another clocked doing 108mph in a 40mph zone. The Met Police reported a 71% increase in drivers speeding in London during lockdown.

Staton said: “When there was less traffic on the road during lockdown, other drivers took the opportunity to be ‘king of the road’ with less thought for fellow road users.

“Now, with traffic on the roads getting back to pre-Covid-19 levels, motorists need to be more vigilant so that inconsiderate driving behaviours don’t cause incidents that result in inconvenience or worse, for other drivers.”