Employers must make sure that anyone they employ to drive a vehicle has the right licence to do so. This should be done at least on an annual basis and should include:
- the licence validity dates
- the categories of vehicle the driver can drive
- if there are any current endorsements on the licence
- if the driver is disqualified
In June this year the DVLA abolished the paper counterpart to the driving license.
This now means that the only document a driver will be able to provide is his photo card which only details the class of vehicle that he is permitted to drive but crucially fails to detail any convictions. This has left businesses with a serious issue of how to check their employee’s licences effectively as the most common method of taking a photocopy will no longer be appropriate. So what are the options?
- Option 1 – Use the DVLA’s own online service. The DVLA have offered two methods: View my details; and Share My Details.
- View My Details is strictly for the driver to check his details only and a disclaimer has to be ticked to confirm that it is the driver accessing the records.
- Companies can use the Share My Details service. This requires the driver to access their own details and to generate a unique code which their employer, or any other interested party, can access. The service is free, however the code is only valid for 21 days which could become an administrative chore with the driver having to generate a code if you require up to date information.
- Option 2 – Use a third party provider. Here at ProAktive we utilise the services of the UK’s leading licence checking provider, Licence Bureau. We require that the driver complete a mandate which grants permission for the DVLA to release details, however this is valid for 3 years during which time we can access the data at any time for a small charge. The service will also profile your drivers so that you can identify who are considered to be high, medium and low risk so that you can decide on your rechecking frequencies.
Each company is different, however we would always recommend option 2 as a way to free you to do what you do best. ProAktive can help you with this via our fleet risk management support programme which takes away all the administration of this function from you.
For any further advice or information, please contact Ian Clayton on 01302 341 344.