Driver Roadworthiness Guide - Personal Circumstances

Personal Circumstances

With thanks to Lucy Smith, Head of Occupational Health and Wellbeing, Mitie 

There are a number of personal circumstances which can affect drivers' energy, mental wellbeing and focus which employers should be aware of. Ideally you will have a culture in which drivers feel able to make you aware of these changes or worries (see Chapter 2 Psychological Safety) but if not, changes in behaviour, energy or motivation levels or performance should be noted and followed up with a supportive, gently probing conversation to determine the cause.

Employers can then make the necessary mitigations or adjustments to support the employee, and to ensure that their driving safety is not affected.

Carers

Many people become carers at some point in their life, often for a sick family member, or ageing parents. This can be a fraught, exhausting and stressful time. Often people find themselves in a caring role unexpectedly and must fit its heavy responsibilities around their other obligations in life. It can bring relentless worry and often the burden of trying to take responsibility for another person's welfare. Sometimes it feels as if the choices carers are asked to make have no good answers, such as when people must decide whether an elderly parent is safe at home or should move to a care home.

There are many aspects to this which can affect an individual's mental and physical wellbeing and their driving safety, such as:

The worry for their loved one can be a constant presence and a distraction.

Individuals can be more anxious than usual in case their loved one has a problem, a fall or a sudden deterioration. This may also affect their sleep.

Those looking after parents often face a reversal of roles from being the son/daughter to 'parent/guardian' which is hard on both parties.

Social care provision is often complicated to navigate and inadequately funded, which puts more pressure on families.

Care is very expensive, which can be a worry if social service provision isn't available.

Caring roles can be exhausting, particularly if an individual has no siblings or partner to share the load.

Effect on road safety

Fatigue, worry and distraction are all potential safety risks when driving. Someone combining work with a carer role may be stressed, and this could affect the level of concentration and energy they bring to their job and their decision-making on the road.

What employers can do

Find out what's wrong.

Ensure they take enough time to look after themselves – 'put on your own oxygen mask first'.

No one can take away the grief and worry of having an elderly or ill parent or sick child but their GP may be able to recommend support.

Identify any 'pinch points' or specific issues such as hospital appointments, or disrupted sleep. Encourage them to book the time off for such appointments, or to inform managers if they have had insufficient sleep so their shift or workload can be re-arranged.

Commuting

If employees drive to work, then they can be extremely tired when driving home, especially if they travel far. Although commuting doesn't strictly count as 'driving for work', a responsible employer will still ensure that someone is likely to be safe when returning home, especially if they have been driving all day, worked a night shift or been 'on call'.

Fatigue can be cumulative, but the effects of fatigue can be more acutely felt at specific times of the week, or at specific points in a given shift.

Effect on road safety

There is a greater risk of fatigue and sleep-related collisions where workers work extended shifts or have short recovery times between shifts. There is also a 30% greater risk of collision when commuting home after a 12-hour shift than after an eight- hour shift.

What employers can do

Be aware of how much driving an employee does on their way to and from work.

Many haulage companies try to recruit drivers within a fixed radius to limit their commute time. This practice could be considered for all employees who drive for work.

Where possible, advocate for use of public transport, (for instance, sponsoring season tickets) or provide transport.

Examine shift patterns. Survey teams and analyse incident and productivity data to find indications of specific points at which fatigue may be apparent. If employees are finishing shifts during the night, or after 11 or 12 hours at work, can this be altered to mitigate the effects of tiredness?

Second jobs

According to a Royal London report, 5.2m people in the UK have taken second jobs to mitigate the cost of living rises, and a further 10m will do so if price inflation continues to outstrip pay awards. Official Office for National Statistics figures which are based on Q3 2024 put workers with second jobs at 1.25m.

Of full-time employees in the Royal London survey, one-fifth worked over 56 hours per week and 28% worked more than 48 hours a week.

Effect on road safety

Having a second job may often mean higher levels of fatigue, stress, and sleep deprivation and may indicate a high level of concern over money.

There is some evidence that employees working two or more jobs are at greater risk of depression.

It's worth remembering that full time employees with partners who take on a second job may also find their own share of out-of-work commitments growing and so may also be more tired.

It is particularly important that drivers get sufficient rest and sleep.

If drivers take a second driving job – such as driving a minicab – on top of their driving/employed hours at work, this can raise their risk of a collision substantially.

For those not covered by EU rules (such as most HGV drivers), the maximum driving time allowed under GB domestic driving rules is 10 hours, and the maximum duty time is 11 hours. This applies to any at-work driver who drives for at least four hours in the day.

Therefore, any at-work driver who also takes a second driving job is likely to be non-compliant with GB driving hours rules.

Managers will also need to ensure that workers with two jobs are not going beyond their allowed duty limits as specified in the Working Time Directive.

What employers can do

Ensure that all employees are asked whether they have a second job.

Include an appropriate warning about second jobs in your driving for work policy.

Require any driver who is working under the GB drivers' hours restrictions, or for whom driving is more than an occasional activity, to sign a declaration with details of any other work or driving activities they undertake.

It's your responsibility to ensure that drivers are fit to drive and legally compliant, so you must be sure that any other employment does not interfere with the drivers' fitness to drive, or their duty/driving hours compliance.

This is true regardless of whether driving is the primary or secondary employment.

Financial concerns

Money is often a major source of anxiety.

An ONS study in early 2023 showed that 22% of adults had borrowed more money than in the previous year and 40% did not expect to be able to save any money in 2023. 49% of those who had fallen behind on bills reported high anxiety levels. People in arrears also had a higher risk of developing depression.

Money worries and poor mental health tend to combine in a vicious circle, with debt making people vulnerable to mental health crises and mental health problems making their financial situation worse. (Money and Mental Health Policy Institute.)

According to the Money and Pension Service, in 2023, 15% of the UK adult population, or 8.1 million people, required debt advice.

Effect on road safety

Money worries are a source of cognitive distraction for drivers.

The levels of stress people feel can affect their decision-making when driving. (See Chapter 2 Human Factors).

Worry and anxiety are frequently causes of insomnia or poor sleep quality, which can cause poor and risky decision-making during driving and the possibility of drowsiness.

What employers can do

Ask them what the problem is. As with many personal problems people may not want to share the details, but asking "Is it financial?" may be enough.

Many employee assistance programmes offer a financial helpline.

Depending upon the situation, it may be possible to adjust when wages are paid to help employees manage their money or meet payments.

For some people, access to financial advice will be sufficient. However, if someone's mental health has suffered, suggest they seek appropriate GP support.

Relationship issues, divorce and bereavement

Problems in a relationship, divorce and bereavement are major stresses in anyone's life. They can disrupt physical and mental wellbeing and create a range of fluctuating emotions which can impact our performance and make it almost impossible to concentrate on the job at hand.

It's important to note that even those people who appear 'fine' and do not express emotion or share their personal business, are quite likely to suffer just as keenly as more expressive colleagues and still require an attentive and supportive awareness of their situation.

Losing a relationship can cause a grief reaction similar to that of bereavement. However, it can also bring financial difficulties, the need to make new practical or living arrangements and issues around childcare or access. It can take a long time for some people to heal and feel they have control of their lives once more.

Effect on road safety

People going through divorce or bereavement can be highly emotional and very stressed.

In a study of stress and emotion on driving behaviour, sad drivers were also more likely to be stressed (see Chapter 3). Although the study did not observe many quantitative changes to driving behaviour, apart from a greater propensity to accelerate hard, the group of sad drivers were involved in four times as many collisions.

Grief and turmoil are intensely distracting.

Conflict within 'marital' relationships and conflict during divorce proceedings have both been shown to cause sleep problems, including insomnia or poor-quality sleep.

What employers can do

The CARE model of bereavement support can be useful: (1) communication, (2) accommodation, (3) recognition of the loss and (4) emotional support.

Listen carefully to what grieving or distressed employees say they need. Some people welcome expressions of sympathy or concern; others find it easier to manage if everyone else carries on as usual. Respect their choice.

Occupational health or other counselling services can be helpful.

Paternity/maternity leave

Having a new baby is usually a joyous time for people. However, it can also come with sleepless nights, daytime fatigue, a certain level of worry and extra out-of-work responsibilities.

Being a parent brings a level of unpredictability to people's lives, such as disturbed nights, sudden childhood illnesses etc.

Parents who have returned to work for the first time since their child was born may be anxious about the baby's care in their absence.

Babies also often come with a higher level of expenditure and greater potential for money worries.

Effect on road safety

Physical and mental fatigue and daytime sleepiness are the major concerns in the early days of parenthood.

However, any parent can be vulnerable to the effects of long hours and high levels of personal responsibility.

What employers can do

Ask people to be open and honest about whether they are sufficiently rested – and be supportive in return.

New parents are going through significant adjustments to their lifestyle. It may be appropriate to consider whether temporary or permanent adjustments to their work schedule could be beneficial to their safety and productivity.

If children are in formal child care environments, parents can be under pressure to pick them up by a certain time or face penalties. This should be taken into account when setting schedules, deliveries or appointments, so that employees are not tempted to speed in order to meet childcare deadlines at the end of their shift.

Skills fade

When people return to work after holidays, paternity or maternity leave or any other prolonged absence, they can suffer from skills fade (or skill decay). This simply means that the behaviours which were well-embedded before their break have faded because they haven't been using them.

Skills fade can also affect drivers when they switch from a newer vehicle to an older one, which doesn't have the same level of technological support, such as reversing sensors or automated functions.

Skills fade can also affect managers who used to drive for work daily, but now only do so occasionally, for instance, to cover a shift.

The human brain is extremely efficient in that it learns by creating new neural pathways which are reinforced by continual use – hence the idea that 'practice makes perfect'. These neural pathways can become so well developed that we no longer have to consciously think about how to do something.

However, the brain also shrinks those pathways which are not regularly used. This means that skills we may have learned when we drove one vehicle, such as manual parking, can fade almost entirely when we have spent sufficient time in a vehicle which has an automatic parking function.

This lack of skill can also be apparent when a driver assistance feature is faulty or inoperable but the driver is used to relying upon it. The technology may not be deemed essential for the job, but it may be essential to the driver's ability to navigate all aspects of driving safely.

Although not strictly 'skills fade', drivers switching to new drivelines after long experience with another may also find it hard to adapt, for example, the transition from diesel to electric vehicles.

Effect on road safety

Unfamiliarity with the vehicle, routes or with the behaviours required in a given vehicle raise a driver's risk of error.

What employers can do

Make sure that drivers refresh their skills on any given vehicle or work task after any extended break and can take the time to refamiliarize themselves with vehicles and tasks as necessary after shorter or annual leave.

If a driver switches to a new vehicle, make sure that they have a full induction and can practice any skills they may not have used in a while before setting off.

Repair driver aids promptly and ensure the driver is confident with manoeuvring the vehicle without them.

Drink, drugs and dependencies

Effect on road safety

Impairment is one of the fatal four – in other words, one of the most common causes of road fatalities. Alcohol, prescribed and unlawful drugs can all severely impair cognitive and motor function, leaving a driver unable to respond appropriately to events or control the vehicle.

Prescribed and over the counter medications

Drivers should always check with a doctor and/or pharmacist as to whether their medication could impair driving.

Some medications must be taken at specific times or time intervals and so transport planning should allow for this.

Drivers should be encouraged to disclose any medications to their line manager, to ensure that appropriate guidance has been sought and that any necessary adjustments can be made to schedules.

Be wary of the use of over-the-counter medications taken short-term to mask or mitigate the symptoms of acute illness, such as heavy colds or flus:

The medications can be impairing and should be cleared with a pharmacist.

If the medication 'wears off' during driving, the return of symptoms is a safety issue.

Driving when unwell, even if the symptoms are temporarily alleviated, is likely to affect performance as fighting infection requires significant energy, meaning the immune system competes with other basic bodily and cognitive functions.

Working when unwell can put a huge strain on the body and make recovery much slower. Recent studies postulate that working when sick costs employers 1.8 x more than absence.

Drivers and managers should risk assess any current illness.

Alcohol

The law says that it is illegal to drive in England and Wales with more than 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and 50 milligrams in Scotland. 

However, any amount of alcohol is sedative and reduces cognitive function and motor precision.

Research has also identified that driving with a hangover on a typical commute to work results in significant driving impairment, equal to that of being intoxicated even though participants were well below the legal alcohol limit for driving.

What employers can do

Consider having a zero tolerance policy for any safety critical operation, such as driving. (Zero tolerance is the term used to exclude alcohol at levels above 0.02% blood alcohol concentration.)

It is very difficult to estimate the time it takes to eliminate alcohol from the body following consumption, so drivers should be educated not to have more than minimal amounts the night before a shift.

Self-medication and dependency

A May 2024 study by Drinkaware found that 56% of adults had used alcohol as a coping mechanism in the previous month.

Individuals also use alcohol to help them sleep although, in reality, alcohol disrupts sleep quality.

What employers can do

Organisations should consider including an approved alcohol screening tool, such as the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), within the driver health assessments conducted by their occupational health team or other medical personnel.

Educate at work drivers on the risks associated with alcohol use and driving.

Drug use

Recreation or illicit drug use is extremely dangerous for drivers. This is because: