COMPANY drivers are still not putting safety first when out on the road, a major survey into driver attitudes has shown.

Risk management company Drive & Survive has issued a series of findings about the way employees think when out on the road and how exposed to risk they are.

Data has been gathered using the 20,000 drivers put through an online assessment by more than 200 of its fleet customers.

Findings include 32% of drivers not having had an eye test within the past two years, when it is estimated that more than 60% of all drivers have defective eyesight, and 7% admit driving more than 50,000 miles a year on business.

'Risk increases dramatically once drivers cover in excess of 25,000 miles, let alone twice that figure,' a spokesman for the company said.

The data has been produced from the 20,000 drivers put through Drive & Survive's Individual Driver Risk Assessment (IDRA) management tool.

The company's fleet risk management director Jack Nickolls said: 'Based on the analysis of all the assessments received, Drive & Survive estimates that only 32% of the drivers would be classified as low risk and thus not needing any further training.

'Of the remaining 68%, 40% would be classified as medium risk and 28% high risk. While the medium risk category can benefit from a programme of e-learning or classroom-based seminars, the only effective way to improve the attitude of high risk drivers is to put them through a hands-on, defensive driving course under the watchful eye of a competent, qualified fleet driver trainer.'

Drive & Survive lunched its IDRA system in autumn last year. The company says it places the emphasis on analysing the driver's attitude and driving environment rather than their knowledge about safe driving.

The company adds that with the responses to key questions mathematically weighted, IDRA can generate a risk profile with a far greater degree of accuracy than other systems.

Findings involving company drivers include:

  • 19% regularly drive in the highest risk period of the day, between 4am and 6am.
  • 57% regularly drive in the second highest risk period, between 8pm and midnight.
  • 14% admitted to driving regularly in both high risk periods of the day, making them highly likely to suffer from fatigue.
  • 1.6% believe the use of handheld mobile phones while driving has no effect on concentration levels.
  • 12% expressed concern about their level of security while stationary in traffic queues.
  • 28% spend time on urban roads, where 74% of incidents happen.
  • 15% had a crash in the previous 12 months, making them statistically more likely to be involved in one again in the next year.

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