Comprehensive driver training programme reaps moral and financial dividends for Miele

21 April 2005

Insurance company recognition of a comprehensive driver training programme introduced by Miele for its 150 company car and van drivers has made the scheme self-funding.

Miele, the German manufacturer of high quality domestic appliances, commercial equipment and fitted kitchens, has just started its third year of driver training with DriveTech (UK), the country’s leading provider of at-work driving risk management, driver assessment and driver training solutions.

With its UK headquarters in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, Miele has seen its already industry-beating average accident rate reduce by about 20% following the introduction of driver training, recognition of which brought a £20,000 premium reduction from its insurers.

With a fleet of 70 company cars, ranging from high-specced Vauxhall Astra and Volkswagen Golfs through Volkswagen Passats and Peugeot 407s to the likes of BMW 5-Series, and a fleet of 80 Volkswagen Transporter vans driven by field service engineers, the company based its driver training programme around the type of accidents drivers suffered.

A study of accident records across the high-mileage fleet - cars are replaced on a four-year/90,000-mile cycle and vans on a 90,000/five-year cycle (London-based vans 50,000 miles/five years as a result of component wear and tear occurred in stop-start motoring) showed that company car drivers were involved in an incident every 50,000 miles - about half the national fleet frequency - while van drivers were involved in an incident every 35,000 miles on average.

Initially, all 150 company vehicle drivers went through the programme which focused on reducing the number of rear-end damage accidents involving Miele drivers - the commonest form of accidents. In addition, the tailored programme also embraced ABS familiarisation and vehicle manoeuvring to solve the problem of, particularly van drivers, hitting immoveable objects while parking and reversing.

The course comprised of two parts; a half-day of workshop where drivers completed DriveTech’s hazard awareness and perception programme at the TRL test track at Crowthorne, close to DriveTech’s head office, and a half-day of on-road training.

The initial one-year programme was followed last year with approximately 40 employees - new recruits and those undergoing refresher training - being put through their paces and this year around 50 staff are expected to complete DriveTech training.

The driver training scheme is backed up by a comprehensive risk management programme which includes driving licence checks, accidents investigated by line managers and any use of hand-held mobile phones being a disciplinary offence.

Tony Stephens, Miele’s administration and facilities director, who is in charge of the almost all diesel, outright purchased fleet, said: ‘We have traditionally had a strong health and safety culture within the business because of the work we undertake. In addition, we have a very strong training ethos within the company.

‘With the increasing national focus on occupational road risk it seemed natural to introduce a driver training programme for all company vehicle drivers from the chief executive downwards.

‘We have a strong moral responsibility to make sure our employees are working in the safest possible environment. The financial bonus we received in the form of a premium reduction, coupled with the reduced number of accidents have been two of the benefits of our commitment to driver training.’

The company’s strong product training culture meant there was no resistance to the driver training programme and Mr Stephens said: ‘We have always given our staff a lot of product-related training, but the one thing many of them do and did not receive any training to carry out was driving. It seemed natural to build driver training into our overall training programme. The success we have had is a powerful endorsement of driver training.’

Jim Kirkwood, managing director of DriveTech (UK), said: ‘We were specifically able to tailor a driver training programme to Miele’s exact needs because the company was already aware of the type of accidents its drivers were involved in. Unfortunately, too few companies have this information at their fingertips.

‘As a consequence of the training completed so far and the company’s ongoing commitment I would expect to see further reductions in the number of accidents and with it significant benefits for Miele as a pro-active company in the area of occupational road risk management.’

EDITOR’S NOTES

DriveTech is the UK's leading provider of ‘driving at work’ risk management, driver assessment and driver training solutions.

DriveTech’s goal is to reduce both an organisation’s vehicle business costs and the personal risk for ‘at work’ drivers, by significantly improving driver ABC – attitude, behaviour and competence – therefore supporting driver safety and corporate ‘duty of care’ requirements.

DriveTech (UK) has won the Institute of Transport Management’s ‘Fleet Award for Driver Training’ in 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004.

DriveTech (UK) can be contacted at enquiries@drivetech.co.uk, telephone 01344 46788 or via its website at www.drivetech.co.uk

For further information contact:
Ashley Martin (telephone 01733 390691) or Arthur Dalziel (01344 762890)
AWD Communications Ltd.