Paper counterpart abolition encourages companies to refresh their risk management policies says Licence Bureau.

Abolition a reminder that licence checking should be a priority for improving road safety and Duty of Care commitments. Removal of the paper licence allows fleet management to review internal HR policies. Companies need to assess whether they can diligently perform internal licence checks. The abolition of the paper counterpart driving licence should serve as a refresh of a company’s approach to road safety, according to Licence Bureau.

With road safety a constant priority, the fleet driving licence checking and compliance company is reminding companies that online licence checking is vital in checking employees’ entitlement to drive. By having access to real time licence data online through the DVLA portal, this forms a solid foundation for fleets’ approach to road safety and risk prevention.

Switching to all-online licence checking should also encourage fleets to similarly refresh related HR policies. This will ensure that all relevant information is managed and stored safely and securely, allowing Duty of Care obligations to be adhered to.

If a fleet’s management choose to perform internal licence checks from 8 June, they’ll need to quickly adapt to the recently launched Share Driving Licence service. They can do this by using the last eight digits of the employee’s licence number and a one-time unique code generated by the employee via View Driving Licence. This will last for 72 hours and is only valid for a solitary check. If the employee doesn’t consent, employers should not use the View Driving Licence service by using other private employee information. It’s important that everyone with an HR role is aware that doing so is a serious offence under the Data Protection Act 1998 without the explicit consent of the data subject.

Employers can obtain written consent from the employee, although in companies with over 10 drivers, this can cause further problems with data collation and is not cost effective. An external third party provider will warrant a smooth transition, while ensuring driver data is up-to-date and regularly checked. Malcolm Maycock, Managing Director at Licence Bureau, said “The abolition of the paper counterpart raises further awareness that verifying an employee’s entitlement to drive is crucial and fleets need to do everything possible to minimise unnecessary risk.

“Moving to an all-online platform should question a company’s approach for licence checking and other in-house HR duties. Using a third-party provider, such as our Compliance Managed Services portal, to securely carry out regular and efficient checks, allows fleets to reduce unnecessary administration hours. In any case, both employers and employees need to be fully aware of their responsibilities when performing licence checks,” added Maycock.