Van Driver Toolkit – Vehicle Safety

Did you know?

  • Drivers face fines up to £2,500, a ban from driving and 3 penalty points for driving a vehicle in a dangerous condition.
  • Wearing a seat belt is law and can result in fines of up to £500 and 3 penalty points if not wearing a seat belt when supposed to.
  • Airbags reduce fatalities by 24% in head-on collisions.
  • 1 in 4 deaths involving vehicles driving for work.
Drivers should take the time to read the vehicle manual and familiarise themselves with any safety aids. 50% of drivers do not understand their vehicle’s safety features. The function of a bulkhead is to keep the driver and passenger safe. Bulkheads keep all work equipment, tools and packages for delivery caged and secure in the rear of the van. They prevent unsecured items in the back of the van from flying forward injuring occupants in the event of heavy braking. People thrown from a vehicle are 4 times more likely to be killed than those who were wearing a seat belt and remain inside the vehicle. Best Practice Tips Airbags are essential when it comes to vehicle safety. Along with seat belts, they help prevent potentially fatal injuries. Reversing and parking aids minimise the chances of damage, injury, or prosecution. They can detect obstructions around the vehicle in the driver’s blind spot such as bollards, pedestrians and other vehicles. The European Parliament has voted to implement 7 new minimum commercial vehicle safety standards from 2022:
  1. Intelligent Speed Assistance – uses GPS to work out the speed limit of the road being travelled on. If driven faster than the limit, the vehicle will automatically slow down.
  2. Reversing detection and reversing camera – to reduce rear collisions.
  3. Drowsiness and distraction monitors – detects a driver’s physical movements like slow eyelid closure, the rate of blinks, and a nodding head.
  4. Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) – automatically applies the brakes to avoid a collision.
  5. Lane keeping assistance – detects lane deviation.
  6. Event data recorders – a ‘black box’ that records vehicle events.
  7. Improved seat belts – provides reminders for driver and passengers.

Provider: Driving for Better Business, National Highways
Resource Type: Web link

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