The latest research from AA Drivetech provides a timely reminder for contractors driving to fixed places of work for set time periods. Looking at road fatalities spanning 2009 to 2014, the study found that a higher number of drivers were killed whilst commuting on a regular journey than staff driving to varying destinations for work reasons, such as to meetings or when making deliveries.

During the six year period analysed, an average of 110 road users including commuting drivers were killed, compared to 87 non-commuters using their vehicles for other work purposes.

The percentage of drivers involved in accidents who identified themselves as being commuters was 22% during the morning and reduced significantly to 13% in the evening.

Assessing people’s commutes in three different periods - early morning, morning and evening – AA DriveTech found that businesspeople commuting between 04:30am and 7am were more prone to having accidents on fast or rural roads and on bends, whereas commuters behind the wheel between 7am and 9am were more likely to crash on urban roads and at T-junctions. Having prangs in 30mph zones is a more common occurrence in the evening.

AA DriveTech’s head of marketing, David Richards, describes the research’s findings as “a wake-up call for many organisations as it shows the commute is even more devastating, in terms of people killed, than people who drive for business.”

Contractors driving to and from the same locations for lengthy periods should strive to maintain alertness, avoiding the auto-pilot mindset that many commuters adopt, whilst heeding warnings over distractions from mobile phones, which is illegal in any case.

Take charge

In other news from the AA, a new partnership with Chargemaster has been announced that will be of benefit to contractors who drive electric cars or vans. The two organisations will be embarking on a project to install electric vehicle charging points at the 2,500 AA-rated hotels throughout the UK. Waking up to a fully-charged car will help businesspeople start the day without worrying about locating a charging point in a perhaps unfamiliar location.

Chargemaster is behind the POLAR charging points, of which there will be 4,500 in the UK by the end of 2016. London will soon see forty of the company’s 50kW Ultrachargers in place, capable of charging an EV within half an hour.

This news was brought to you by Umbrella’s partners, Vehicle Consulting of Stockport, who provide discounted business car leasing and personal contract hire (PCH) prices to our clients across the UK.