Opinion: Why driver wellbeing is a top priority for commercial fleets

By Oliver Temple, channel sales leader for EMEA plus APAC at Lytx

Commercial vehicles are relied upon to support many of the UK’s industries, with 81% of all domestic freight transported by road. But keeping goods moving depends on having people behind the wheel.

Fleet operators are all too aware of the need to attract and retain more drivers, with the Road Haulage Association (RHA) estimating that 40,000 new drivers per year are needed over the next five years, to avoid serious shortages. 

While new roles are being filled, attention also needs to be given to the existing workforce, with an appreciation of wellbeing becoming increasingly valued and expected. 

Many operators recognise this and are already taking the necessary steps, with a recent survey carried out by Lytx and Webfleet highlighting that 44% of van fleets place driver wellbeing as their top priority.

While wellbeing can encompass numerous elements, there are three key areas that consistently resurface in the conversations I have with operators and drivers – mental health, driver empowerment and safety.  

Prioritising mental health

Good mental health is crucial to overall wellbeing and our study found that this remains a concern – with 63% of fleets reporting high or moderate stress levels among drivers.

It’s important to recognise where drivers might be facing challenges and to have processes in place to offer help when needed.

This could include introducing a mental health first aider, as well as updating induction packs to signpost information about where drivers can access support.

These measures are particularly pertinent if an incident occurs – whether that’s a near-miss with another vehicle or a more serious collision.

Encouragingly, our study showed that two thirds (67%) of van fleets now have formal processes in place to support drivers after incidents. This is even higher among HGV fleets, at 96%. 

Empowering drivers

To support wellbeing, fleets also need to provide tools and technologies that empower drivers and help to keep them safe on the road.

Intelligent video telematics is one solution that is helping to achieve this. Using artificial intelligence, the technology combines information from machine vision to detect whether a driver is displaying signs of risky driving.

The driver can then be alerted in real-time, allowing them to get ahead of risk and make good decisions earlier.

Insights gathered by these technologies can also help to guide coaching sessions by encouraging open discussion and helping drivers to understand where small changes can reduce the likelihood of an incident occurring.

These sessions can also be an opportunity to understand any pressures that a driver may be facing, or other factors that may not be apparent from video footage alone.

Ending every journey with a safe return

Most essential to a driver’s wellbeing is knowing they will return to their homes and families safely.

Some 97% of our survey respondents said that video telematics solutions are an effective way to reduce safety incidents, with AI cited as being particularly important in helping to prevent incidents before they occur.

This largely comes down to the ability to provide insights into driver behaviour, with more than two-thirds (69%) emphasising the importance of real-time driver alerts.

Our research highlighted that this technology is helping to ease driver shortages, with 94% of fleets saying that investment in safety technology has improved driver recruitment and retention.

Putting measures in place to protect drivers not only means that your fleet becomes an attractive option when sourcing new drivers, but that they are also taking the right steps to look after the ones they have.

Read ‘How to improve your driver health and well-being’ from Fleet News.