As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the nation has become increasingly focused on the how vital our roads are for transporting goods and supplies around Great Britain. So, it’s little surprise that road safety continues to be of national importance. Not only do road casualties and injuries devastate families and communities, but collisions also have a cost to operators, cost billions to the economy and add pressure on our already stretched NHS and emergency services.
We should be proud of Great Britain’s strong road safety record and of those operators who recognise the cost of not following the rules can be far greater than the cost of complying. Since its formal launch in 2018, many of these operators have gone one step further to join the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s (DVSA’s) Earned Recognition Scheme, to show that their business meets the highest driver and vehicle safety standards.
Not only does this scheme bring these operators significant commercial and road safety benefits, but by adopting policies that promote safety, positive environmental impacts, and the wellbeing of their communities, they improve outcomes for cities and towns, and the people who live and work there. DVSA Earned Recognition is a free to join, voluntary scheme and is designed for HGV and PSV fleets of any size, recognising excellent operators. For those operators who are not quite meeting the standards of the scheme, DVSA will work with them and support them to make necessary improvements.
Once they’ve joined the scheme, they will have access to commercial modules such as HS2 & LPT2 and other contract opportunities. Members have access to a dedicated Earned Recognition team, to support them with all aspects of compliance.
Operators and their drivers will also experience fewer costly and inconvenient roadside checks, as DVSA will recognise them as a compliant operator. This then frees DVSA up to target our resources towards stopping those who are seriously and/or regularly unsafe – providing better road safety for you and all road users. We’re here to help you get it right and we welcome any benefits that being part of the scheme brings to your business along the way. One operator, who joined the scheme at the end of 2017, told us they’ve saved £7.5 million being an Earned Recognition member (a saving of £500-£750 per vehicle per year) due to the reduction in roadside stops and MOT exemptions during COVID.
One hundred percent of Earned Recognition operators are in favour of the scheme, with ninety-one percent rating it as either ‘good’ or ‘very good’. If you would like to know whether your business is eligible to join, you can contact: dvsaer@dvsa.gov.uk.
