When an employee causes an accident outside of the office it can well have legal implications on the employers. Neil Hodgson outlines a number of measures that employers can use to indicate how their company performs against both best practice and statutory requirements. It also allows them to gauge how well money has been spent and where they might need to target resources.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) estimates that up to a third of all road traffic accidents involve somebody who was working at the time. Because these workers are out of the office, quite often in their own vehicle rather than one owned by the company, there can be a general inclination towards not considering this to be part of the working environment. The truth is that employers have the same duty of care to someone behind the wheel as they do to someone sitting behind a desk, if they are driving as part of their job (this excludes the daily commute). There are many challenges and responsibilities that a company can face in keeping their employees (and members of the public) out of danger while they are on the move, including vehicle maintenance, risk assessments, training and control measures.

The shift from manufacturing to service industries common in the UK over recent years, means that the service sector now by far out-strips the manufacturing sector in terms of numbers of employees*. For the majority of businesses this means that the most likely task where a negligent death of an employee or member of the public could happen is while driving at work.

The implementation of the Corporate Manslaughter and Homicide Act 2007 , ensured that the consequences for employers resulting from a negligent death of someone who is working at the time, are more clearly defined. It removed some of the perceived obstacles to bringing a successful prosecution.