New drug driving legislation came into force on 2 March 2015. The Drug Driving (Specified Limits) (England and Wales) Regulations 2014 introduce a new offence of driving, attempting to drive or be in charge of a motor vehicle on a road or other public place with amounts of certain controlled drugs (16 specified in all) above specified limits in the driver’s blood. Article by Anna Hart, Managing Associate and Francesca Hodgson, Solicitor at Bond Dickinson LLP.
Previous “drug driving” legislation makes it an offence for a person to drive or attempt to drive a vehicle if they are unfit to drive through drugs. This law will remain in force, but the key impact of the new legislation is that if a driver is found to have amounts of one of the specified drugs above the prescribed limits, they can be convicted on that basis, without any evidence of impairment and without there needing to be a link between any impairment and drug use. As might be expected, the drugs listed in the legislation include illegal drugs such as cocaine. However, they also include drugs included in medicines which are either legally prescribed or available over the counter, for example diazepam, ketamine, lorazepam and morphine.
The Department of Transport (DfT) estimates that around 19 million prescriptions a year are issued for drugs which are included in the scope of this offence. This means that drivers are at risk of inadvertently breaking the new law when taking certain commonly prescribed medicines. The DfT has reassured drivers that people who use the drugs listed legitimately, following the advice of a healthcare professional, will be able to drive without fear of being prosecuted. However, the consequences of getting this wrong can be stark, involving up to six months’ imprisonment, a fine of up to £5,000 and a minimum of 12 months’ disqualification.
Drug use (both legal and illegal) can have a significant impact on the health and welfare of employees, and their ability to carry out their role safely. Employers have a general duty under health and safety legislation to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of employees at work. As part of this, employers should consider how the risks associated with both drug and alcohol use should be factored into their health and safety management system. For many employers, this is dealt with by way of specific drug and alcohol policies. The new legislation should serve as a prompt for employers to look again at these policies, and indeed to consider introducing these if not already in place. According to press reports, almost half of UK drivers are unaware that the new legislation is coming into force. This means that employers play a key role in helping to ensure that their workforce is up to speed with the coming changes. This is particularly important where driving forms an integral part of an employee’s role, but given the number of people who drive to work on a regular basis it is of wider relevance.
Employers would be well advised to ensure they have appropriate steps in place to promote awareness of the workplace risks associated with drug and alcohol use and to promote a safe and healthy workplace culture. This could include consideration of any existing drug testing procedures, identifying any groups or individuals in the workforce who might be particularly affected and considering whether any awareness training should be put in place. If employers do identify the need for any change to policies or procedures, this should be done in consultation with employees, to ensure that any changes have the support of staff. Finally, employers should remember to review the effectiveness of any existing or new measures at appropriate intervals to assess how well they are working and whether any further changes need to be made.
