Businesses consider restricting young drivers’ use of company cars on safety grounds?

The argument for restricting young drivers has reared its head once again, this time in relation to company owned vehicles.

By now, we all know that young drivers – particularly young male drivers – are at far greater risk of being involved in a road traffic accident. This statistic has long been used by the insurance industry to justify the high premiums charged of motorists under the age of 25.

Now it appears that businesses are looking at the possibility of restricting younger employees, either by preventing them from driving one of the fleet vehicles altogether or by offering limited access to them.

Specifying a minimum age for company car drivers may not be quite this straightforward, however, as organisations must avoid the complications caused by discrimination legislation.

According to employment advisory service ACAS, any restriction must be justified objectively, utilizing the appropriate evidence to support their reasoning.

“As a rule of thumb, it is not lawful to discriminate on the grounds of cost alone,” ACAS have said.

It may, however, be possible for employers to outline a minimum period of time that a driver should have held a UK licence for before being allowed behind the wheel of a commercial vehicle.

Thousands of young individuals in their late teens and early twenties are employed every year in positions where a company car may be provided. But with research by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) showing that male drivers in the 20-30 category as the most likely to be disqualified from driving, and other studies showing that the accident rate for this demographic is also alarmingly high, many businesses are reluctant to take the risk of sending their staff out on the roads in a company financed vehicle.

Did you know that Winns handles non-fault commercial vehicle accidents, too? Call Winns today on 0800 988 6288 or access no obligation advice today using our Live Chat facility.