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Fleets need to ensure their drivers understand the advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) fitted to their vehicle to make certain the safeguards remain effective, Arval has said.
According to the leasing company, some drivers are unaware that safety features are fitted to their vehicle, and have little idea how they work.
Arval UK head of consultancy Shaun Sadlier said: "A large range of ADAS devices are making their way onto company cars quite quickly in all parts of the market.
"This is a good thing, as they can have a definite impact on the safety of drivers and other road users.
"However, because of the unobtrusive nature of many of these devices - they usually don't make themselves known until they are needed - drivers often don't know they are fitted or what they do."
Sadlier said that most fleets would have stories of drivers who didn't know they had autonomous emergency braking fitted until they experienced it braking for them.
He continued: "In one respect this is fine, because the technology is working, but it is also really a failure of education.
"Perhaps the most pertinent example I have heard is a driver who was puzzled that their car kept alerting them when they passed a coffee shop.
"In fact, it was the alertness system advising the driver to stop and take a rest. This has definite safety implications."
Sadlier said that fleets needed to incorporate a degree of ADAS education into their fleet policies and supporting documentation.
He said: "Certainly, if there is safety equipment fitted to a company car and you have not checked that the driver knows how it works, then you are neglecting something that could prevent injury or save a life.
"As more and more ADAS equipment is fitted to cars, this is going to become more of an issue and fleets would benefit from proactively responding to support their drivers."
Arval has produced a guide to ADAS that is available to its customers on its Fleet Toolbox website.
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