The UN’s declaration of support for the Decade of Action includes a specific directive encouraging ‘organisations to contribute actively to improving work-related road safety through adopting the use of best practices in fleet management’.

Meanwhile, RoSPA’s Young Drivers at Work Project is highlighted as an example of good practice in the Government’s road safety framework.

Jenner said: “Fleets across the country have embraced safe driving initiatives and I believe more will follow suit as they realise they not only benefit road safety, but their wider business.”

Altogether, the UN initiative aims to save five million lives and prevent 50 million injuries by 2020, while without setting any firm targets the UK Government strategy suggests that fatalities could fall by 37%, to 1,770 by 2020.

Julie Townsend, campaigns director at Brake, said: “We are bitterly disappointed that the Government has failed to include targets for casualty reductions. It is vital that we are ambitious in putting a stop to these needless tragedies.”

Nevertheless, she welcomed the move to crackdown on careless and dangerous driving, but suggested that without increased investment in traffic policing, it would have a limited impact.

Kevin Clinton, RoSPA’s head of road safety, questioned whether there could also be an element of subjectivity in deciding what constitutes more minor careless driving for which a fixed penalty would be appropriate and more serious offences, for which there should be a prosecution.

“The police and public need to understand the types of behaviour that constitutes a fixed penalty offence and those which should go to court,” he said.

Motoring lawyer Oliver Gardner, from Howards Solicitors, explained: “A key concern is that the police will not have the discretionary power, training or uniformity of approach to safeguard the protection offered by the courts.

“Consider the real threats to livelihoods for example - a driving licence could be at risk for the accumulation of minor offences over a three year period, if little discretion is applied. The current system makes rulings that consider the interests of all parties. The new proposals do not.”