Warning over company car servicing

Businesses have been warned to ensure that drivers of company vehicles check their vehicles regularly to avoid damage to the cars and the possibility of accidents.

The warning follows a new study carried out by risk management and driver training specialists, Peak Performance, which revealed that up to a quarter of company drivers don't bother checking their vehicles between services or are unaware that they need to.

Many rely on regular servicing at garages to carry out important checks to fluid and other levels but, as service intervals on modern cars can typically be either 12 months or 20,000 miles apart, the chance of potentially dangerous faults developing in the meantime is significant.

The study, of 1,000 company-owned vehicles carried out over eight months from May to the end of December last year, also found that one in 10 vehicles had such low oil levels that there was a very good chance of their engines seizing up during the driver training exercise.

Ten per cent of cars showed either virtually empty, low or only half full engine oil levels, with a small number of engines being over-filled with oil, which can also lead to engine problems.

A further 107 vehicles had tyre problems, with either illegal tread depth or tyre rim damage, predominantly the nearside front tyre where hitting the kerb had caused damage. And 25% of all tyres checked were either under or over inflated.

There has been considerable publicity over new laws governing the use of mobile phones, but while 178 drivers surveyed were using headsets for their phones, they had no cradles as part of their hands-free kit, contrary to the legislation that clearly states that the phone must now be restrained.

However, the publicity is definitely having some effect as 42% of all those surveyed had hands-free phones built into their vehicles as standard.

The survey of 1,000 company owned vehicles comprised 75% cars with the remainder light or heavy commercial vehicles and a small number of minibuses and was conducted over eight months in 2003.It involved 800 men and 200 women drivers.

The data was collected by Peak Performance trainers carrying out their normal vehicle checks before taking corporate clients out on the road for behind the wheel training.