Clarion Response selects Driver Audit to communicate fleet policy

Clarion Response, the in-house repairs and maintenance service of Clarion Housing Group which is the UK’s largest provider of affordable housing, has selected the Driver Audit module from Licence Check to communicate a change in fleet policy to its near-500 company van drivers.

Clarion Response carries out 1,000 repairs a day and makes more than 250,000 visits to residents each year with more than 450 trained staff. It forms part of the London headquartered Clarion Housing Group, which has a portfolio of 125,000 properties and 350,000 residents.

Clarion Response operates a fleet of 480 company vans, primarily panel vans such as Ford Transit, Volkswagen Crafter and Vauxhall Vivaro.

It also operates three electric Nissan e-NV200 vans, and has just taken delivery of 10 Ford Transit Custom PHEVs, which have an electric range of 30 miles, primarily for work in London. The company also plans to add around 40 pure electric Vauxhall Vivaros by the end of the year.

Colin Hutt, fleet and environment manager at Clarion Response, said the company already used the award-winning, cloud-based risk management solution, DAVIS, from Licence Check to carry out all fleet compliance measures, including licence checking for all drivers and vehicle condition checks.

But he had decided to add the Driver Audit module, which Licence Check launched last November, to communicate important changes in fleet policy to all his company drivers.

“Driver Audit has been great for us. I’ve re-written the fleet operating policy and the driver handbook to make drivers aware of their responsibilities – such as having a valid licence, carrying out regular vehicle checks and so on.

“We needed to make sure that all drivers had seen the new policies and have used the Driver Audit module to communicate with them all.

“The drivers firstly have to acknowledge that the information we hold about them is correct and has not changed since the last audit. Then they have to confirm that they have opened and read the new policy documents, that they accept the terms and conditions and agree to fulfil their responsibilities.

“This completes a perfectly auditable electronic trail that allows us to confirm the status of all of our drivers and show that every one is compliant with the new policies. In that respect the Driver Audit module has worked perfectly for us,” he added.

Derby-based Licence Check launched Driver Audit late last year within its portfolio of services, because of rising numbers of grey fleet drivers during the coronavirus pandemic as more employees shied away from public transport.

The new online module, described at https://www.edavis.co.uk/what-we-do/driver-audit/ integrates with other services within the DAVIS system or can be run as a stand-alone exercise. Licence Check will be showcasing it at the Innovation & Technology in Transport Hub at the Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Centre from June 30 to July 1 to an audience of private and public sector fleet and transport managers.

Businesses can use the audit module to audit their employees to definitively answer a number of important questions. This helps businesses identify who is driving for business and the vehicle they use, how far they are driving for work, the times of day, the types of road typically travelled and accident history so that the appropriate driving policy and compliance checks are put in place.

Terry Hiles, General Manager at Licence Check, commented: “To ensure they are or remain legally compliant, businesses need to audit their employees on a regular basis to confirm who is driving for business, to establish the vehicle they use for this and whether it is company or privately owned.

“With more employees becoming home based and with those that do come into the office avoiding public transport, we expect people to be increasingly using their own cars for work related purposes.   That puts the emphasis on employers and contractors to ensure they have the suitable checks in place to ensure they are complying with the law and that they are not putting their employees or themselves at risk.”