FLEET operators who fail to include licence checking as part of an employee's terms of contract are rendering the process void, leaving room for unfair dismissal claims.

At a recent road safety conference, held by the Fleet Safety Forum, the majority of fleet managers attending said they completed licence checks on their drivers. However, only 5% said it was included in the employee's contract.

Speaking at the conference, David Faithful, practice development manager at solicitor Amery-Parkes, said: 'If implementing a policy, you must include it in the employment terms otherwise an employee could refuse the licence check.

'If drivers refuse a licence check, you can't dismiss them. There is also a risk that if the insurance company discovers drivers have an incorrect licence, the insurance may be invalid.'

Faithful says at a recent Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) conference only four delegates from 120 included licence checking in the empl-oyee terms of contract.