A RISK management company has launched an assessment program designed to tackle the problem of driver fatigue.

Peak Performance Management's (PPM) Ride Awake product allows fleet and line managers to look at their drivers' circumstances in and out of work, so they can assess whether employees are at risk of tiredness while out on the road.

The programme comes up with solutions and measures that can be put in place for a range of problems, from personal issues such as a new baby, or added work pressures from larger sales territories or cover for holidaying colleagues.

PPM has instigated the program following growing concerns about the problem of falling asleep at the wheel.

Recently, a survey by road safety charity Brake found that only one in five company car drivers had been given advice from their employers about how to combat fatigue.

The PPM package also gives companies an audit trail, which could go some way to protecting the company from liability, should an employee have a serious accident.

James Sutherland, managing director of PPM, said: 'Tiredness at the wheel is a potential killer, and companies have to take proactive measures to prevent or reduce its occurrence.'