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Dealing in danger...
Page 7
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Russian roulette or dicing with death —whatever you call it, it's something that, whether we like it or not, haulage firms are exposed to every day. Accidents take only fractions of seconds to happen, yet they can cause a lifetime of pain for those involved.
Unfortunately, the very nature of haulage makes it a prime accident risk. Most of the time it's fine—just think of the many thousands of miles wagon drivers travel every year without incident. But you can't get away from the growing number of news reports about accidents
involving trucks on the road and in haulage yards. Sadly, CM reports such incidents week-in, week-out.
That's why we welcome the news that the Health and Safety Executive is seeking to issue a new code of practice for vehicle movements in haulage yards and distribution depots in a bid to slash accident rates. And we're also supporting the Trades Union Congress's demand that employers carry out risk assessments on drivers to help cut fatalities on the roads.
Yes, we admit that both will be seen as yet more red tape, and yes, we admit that they will take precious time and effort. But the sheer time and effort involved in dealing with a fatality in your business would be far, far more—and the emotional stress even worse.