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Is it right for a company to make their drivers pay for their driver training?
It's not uncommon in certain sectors or professions for companies to ask employees to repay some, or all, of their training fees if they resign within a defined timescale following a course.
A good example of this is where a company pays for an employee to have HGV driving lessons and a test. If the employee leaves for another job within say 6 months, it not unreasonable for the company to expect at least some of their costs to be repaid.
However this week I learnt that this practice is now being taken a step further and that, in some companies, drivers are being asked to pay for their defensive driver training anyway - not just as a compensation measure if they leave.
My initial reaction to learning about this was that it's not fair! Although on reflection it does have some merits. If for example, the company in question has a high number of crashes, albeit mostly small knocks and bumps, then perhaps this is justified.
Because if the main reason for crashes occurring is driver attitude, caused through a lack of care because they are not driving their own vehicles, then giving them more personal responsibility and accountability for their own training may see rewards in lower crash statistics.
If people are told they will have to pay for more training if they continue to have at-fault incidents more care may be taken with company vehicles.
One type of vehicle that seems particularly prone to abuse is the company van! Because whilst it's rare to see a car park full of cars covered in dents and scratches, in some depots many of the vans are so battle-worn that you're hard pressed to find one in perfect condition.
It's something that's always left me perplexed as to why many drivers will take such great care of the goods they are delivering, but such little care of the vehicle that they drive each day.
During my time in the driver training and risk management profession I've met many company van drivers that are not concerned when a mirror is knocked off or another light is broken whilst reversing and deem it a natural aspect of being a vocational driver.
At a recent meeting, I asked what happens to a driver if he /she damages a van. The reply was, "They complete the accident forms"....... that was it! Later in that meeting I asked what happens if a driver damages a client's goods? This time the reply was, "They would be straight in front of their manager and if they were negligent they would be disciplined". The conversation went on and I asked why the company took a different stance to what was the same thing in my book. The reply was road accidents can't always be avoided, but it is only carelessness that causes damage to our goods.
Ask any driver trainer and they will say 95% of crashes are down to human error - so they are avoidable.
So I ask myself this question again. 'Is it right for a company to make their drivers pay for their driver training?'
The truth is there are pros and cons in equal measure when you look at this issue. But I do think that if a driver has a blameworthy accident then they should shoulder at least some of the cost.
However, it should not be a one sided process. Therefore, if you are going to impose a system where drivers pay for driver training, you should also offer them a reward if they look after their vehicles and drive economically. That way they can receive a share of the savings that the company makes through better driving and less accidents.
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