RoSPA Press Office : Press Release
October 11, 2004
ROSPA'S NEW POLICIES CAN HELP MANAGE ROAD RISK
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents will discuss new policies that are essential to anyone who drives as part of their work, at a seminar next month. The proposals for Managing Occupational Road Risk (MORRT) concentrate on the dangers of speed, fatigue and the use of mobile phones while driving.
Kevin Clinton, RoSPA Head of Road Safety, will outline the policies at the Practical Risk Management seminar, sponsored by Toyota GB, at the Hilton Leeds Garforth, Leeds, on November 2, 2004.
He will give practical information for employers about how they can make their staff aware of what can be done to reduce accidents on the road.
With 800 to 1,000 deaths each year linked to people driving for work, this seminar is vital to employers, particularly those who are fleet managers and transport operators, as well as to trades union representatives and safety managers or advisers.
Other speakers will include: Chris Thompson, Head of Operations, South Yorkshire Police, on the police's role in MORR investigations; and Tony Cowan-Martin, Head of Health and Safety, NHS Highland, and Melvin Hodgetts, Head of Safety at Royal Mail, on what their organisations have done to develop road risk management.
Guidance from the Health and Safety Commission and the Department for Transport now makes managing at-work road risk a mainstream health and safety issue.
Roger Bibbings, RoSPA Occupational Safety Adviser, said: "This seminar focuses on all the key issues surrounding this subject. Presentations by employers such as Royal Mail will show how MORR can be woven into the way a company manages health and safety.
"Unfortunately, some organisations still do not understand how serious the knock-on effects of work-related road accidents can be if they do not have a good health and safety system in place. There is a good business case for a company to manage road risk, as road crashes cost time and money in terms of absent staff, loss of production and damage to commercial reputation.
"Any business that employs people to drive as part of their work needs to know what risks they face on the roads, and how those dangers can be reduced by following simple guidance."
For bookings and details, call 0121 248 2120 or visit www.rospa.com/morr
