Employers Should Know About Checking A Driver Licence
An employer checking a driver licence is one of the most fundamental – and crucial – aspects of fleet compliance is ensuring that every driver who goes behind the wheel of a business vehicle is qualified to do so.
Failing to do so, or to establish that reasonable procedures were made to verify a driver was lawful, can result in large penalties and other significant repercussions.
Approximately 6% of UK motorists have points on their licence. Many of these drivers will not divulge this to an employer unless specifically questioned.
This is why fleet managers as the employer, must be checking the driver licence on a frequent basis..
An employer checking a driver licence is not only to validate a driver’s eligibility to drive, but they also protect against potential penalties and reduces the potential of road accidents.
These are the most crucial things you should know regarding examining drivers’ licences:
You can choose to verify your employees’ licences online with the DVLA.
You may do a employee driver licencing check on any employee by accessing the Gov.uk website, but you must obtain their consent each time. Employers have been reported to utilise their drivers’ National Insurance data to verify their licence, however this is a violation of the Data Protection Act.
The driver must produce a Check Code, which is then used by the employer or fleet manager to see the employee’s licence details.
This is an excellent approach to assess a driver’s eligibility, but it is a time-consuming process that requires the driver’s cooperation each time a check is conducted.
Allowing an employee to drive a corporate car without a valid licence is a criminal offence.
It is an offence under the Road Traffic Act of 1988 for anybody to knowingly drive without a valid licence, or for an employer to allow a driver to operate a corporate vehicle without a legal licence.
It is critical to understand that companies have a legal obligation to verify the eligibility of anybody who drives their cars.
A routine driving licence check is the most effective strategy to reduce the hazards associated with having an ineligible and uninsured motorist on the road.
There is a better alternative for mass checking than DVLA Online.
Using the DVLA online service becomes inconvenient when verifying driver licences in bulk or on a frequent basis.
The Safe2Drive system is intended to make driver licence check faster and easier. It’s easy to set up, you only need to ask your drivers for approval once every three years, and the system interacts perfectly with its own mobile drivers app to give the maximum in flexibility and administration control.
You must obtain permission from a motorist in order to examine their licence.
Employers must always get consent from drivers before examining their licence information under the Data Protection Act of 1988 and the GDPR.
This is why the DVLA has implemented the Check Code system, however you must go through the process each time you complete a licence check.
One of the primary advantages of adopting the Safe2Drive system is that you only require consent from a driver once every three years, either on paper or electronically via an email or the drivers app.
It is critical to do frequent licencing inspections.
Employers must verify their drivers’ licences on a regular basis and must be able to demonstrate that they have a robust licencing checking system in place.
Points can quickly accrue, and a driver’s ability to drive might alter at any time. As a result, it’s usually considered best practise to verify a driver’s licence at least once a year.
A more frequent driver licence check should be undertaken on drivers who are known to be at a higher risk, such as those who have previously collected points, are inexperienced, or have a higher accident rate.
Safe2Drive system allows you to schedule and automate driver licence checks. You can reduce the danger of having uninsured drivers on the road this way.
A thorough licence verification process reduces responsibility.
If a driver is detected driving a corporate vehicle without a valid driver’s licence, both the individual and the company may face expensive fines and other penalties.
If a motorist without a current licence causes a major accident, criminal charges may be filed, and the fines can be catastrophic for a business.
Clearly, knowing when a driver earns up points is not always feasible. But, if a company can demonstrate that they verify licences on a frequent basis and have a robust system in place, they may establish a strong legitimate defence.