| Safe conduct |
|
|
|
|||||||||
Driving Safely has been designed to encourage employees, including those who don’t drive company vehicles, to drive in a safe and responsible manner at all times in order to protect their own safety and that of their passengers and other road users. It ensures that Volvo Car UK’s employees are updated with changes in legislation, directs them to the Department for Transport website for further information on road safety, and encourages them to participate in free driver training. The handy A5 guide offers advice and information on driving and tiredness, driving and intoxicating substances, the correct use of seatbelts, the importance of improving observation and taking regular breaks on long journeys. It reminds drivers of the penalties for offences such as causing death by dangerous driving, and underlines the effect of speed – for example, at 35mph you are twice as likely to kill someone you hit as at 30mph. Safe talking on the move The booklet also covers the current hot topic – the imminent ban on use of hand-held mobile phones from 1 December this year. After this date, guilty operators will face a fixed fine of £30 or a fine on conviction up to £1,000 plus three penalty points on the driver’s licence. Volvo’s policy – outlined in the booklet – is to provide all its business mobile phone users with hands-free equipment, but even then to recommend that the use of a mobile phone while on the move should be kept to an absolute minimum. All Volvo employees calling someone on their mobile phone are encouraged to first check that the recipient can continue to drive safely while talking and, if in doubt, to terminate the call until it is safe to continue. Sound business sense “There are numerous legal reasons why Volvo Car UK should undertake a driver safety programme. However, we have provided our people with this guide to improve their safety and because it makes sound business sense too. We want our employees, and family members, to enjoy our exciting range of vehicles, but this needs to be balanced with a level of control to reduce risk to the business and to our people,” says Tom Russell. “Driver safety training is at the core of our programme to educate our employees on the reduction of road risk. We have a clear set of guidelines on safe driving, we rigorously monitor the driving licences of all our drivers, and we are rolling-out vehicle familiarisation for all new employees. Our staff will be left in no doubt that their safety is central to our approach.” To further emphasise the importance of driver safety, all Volvo employees are entitled to a tiered level of driver training. Those considered “high-mileage” users receive a three-hour in-vehicle training session, while those who cover fewer miles can attend a Safe Driving Seminar. Small passengers, big responsibility
Children In Cars – part of Volvo’s “Driving Safely” campaign – provides essential reading for any working parent or parent-to-be, or any driver responsible for child passengers. Decades of research As well as pages of handy hints, there are also a number of key findings and recommendations, backed by statistics gathered by Volvo over almost four decades of research into child in-car safety and three decades of road accident investigation. Renowned for being at the forefront of car safety, Volvo continues to lead the way by creating the world’s first computer model of a pregnant crash test dummy, to discover how both a mother and her unborn baby are affected by vehicle safety aids in accidents. Children in Cars outlines the injuries that an unborn child is most likely to suffer during an accident, and the steps the pregnant woman can take to help reduce the risk to her unborn baby. Rearwards facing is safest Some of the facts and advice in the booklet will be surprising to British parents. For example, in the UK, our babies usually “graduate” to a forward-facing seat when they’re around nine months old.
This recommendation is backed up by some thought-provoking statistics. Most Swedish children continue to travel facing backwards much longer than other European youngsters, and the difference in injury and death rates is striking. For example, the risk of a child dying in a car accident in France is twice as high as in Sweden, and German statistics reveal a similar pattern. Other key information/recommendations in Children in Cars includes: • Never put a baby or toddler in a rearward-facing seat, or anyone under the height of 4ft 7ins, in the front passenger seat of a car with an airbag, unless the airbag has been disabled by an authorised dealership • The importance of restraining a child in a car – not just for its own safety. A child weighing 30kg, travelling in a car at 40km/h will weigh up to a tonne by the time they hit you in the front – or go through the windscreen – in a front-end collision • Booster seats with backrests provide better protection for children aged three or four or above than ones without backrests Children In Cars is available upon request from the Volvo Information Centre on 0800 400 430 or to download from www.volvocars.co.uk |
|||||||||
| |
