Andrew R Child has been a Sole Trader for 23 years. I have always worked with Tarmac and currently have one 32000 kg Tipper Lorry. The business is based in Harlow and currently have two drivers and one vehicle. We are mainly engaged in hauling Tarmac and aggregates on behalf of Tarmac during both the day time and the night time, and operate exclusive for Tarmac.
We first heard about FORS through Tarmac. We looked at the benefits of joining the scheme and we saw that these were standards and ethos that we wished to adopt of improving the safety for both our vehicles and drivers
We take safety very seriously, so we achieved FORS Bronze accreditation and then went onto applying for our Silver Accreditation which we achieved in July 2017
FORS has helped benefit to me being able to achieve better standards through their driver training programme, both classroom based and through e-Learning modules, along with FORS toolbox talks. This has led me to have a better understanding of road safety and raised their awareness of the needs of other vulnerable road users. Over the past four years my accident rate has been at zero and this I attribute to FORS and their driver training programme and the Spec of the vehicle which raises the companies awareness of road safety.
” The E Learning is such an important part of informing drivers of the need to understand Vulnerable Road Users ” Andrew Child, Owner Driver
My vehicles is fitted with 360 degree cameras, side cameras, near side proximity sensors and audible left turn alarms, Class IV,V, V1 Mirrors, flashing beacons on the cab of all vehicles, cyclist safety stickers to both the rear and sides of our vehicles. Also my vehicle is fitted with lane departure warnings.
Both myself and my other driver have completed Safe Urban Driver courses and have completed the FORS E-Learning Modules.
We have recently implemented a new recruitment policy that outlines that we need to look at employing younger drivers/employees and provide training to that particular role.
“FORS has taught us the importance of road safety ” – Andrew Child, Owner Driver
I have learnt that by equipping my vehicle to the highest safety standards that my accident rate has continued to stay at zero and this has saved both time and money in reduced claims to the company.
My vehicle is currently at Euro 6 spec and i have put in a programme to replace these vehicle in 2019. This vehicle will also be to the highest safety equipment and will be Euro 6 as a minimum, so as to reduce the harmful emissions to the environment.
Achieving Gold Accreditation will help me to continue to strive towards the highest road safety standards and that we are able to continue to maintain this safety record and protect the environment.
” Are accident rate has continued to remain at zero for the last four years”- Andrew Child, Owner Driver
Once we had gained our Bronze accreditation we decided to go for the Silver Accreditation in 2017 as we were already doing everything required of us to gain Silver accreditation. Once we were at Silver i decided to show best practice and be able to stand out from our competitors.
We are proud to have maintained a zero accident rate over the last four years, showing our competitors that it is possible to do this
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|
MPG | Incidents per 100,000 Kms | Number of PCNs |
| February 2016 – January 2017 | 8.7 | 0 | 0 |
| February 2017 – January 2018 | 9.2 | 0 | 0 |
| Percentage improvement | 10.5% | 100% | 0% |
*Annual improvement in MPG and Incidents per 100,000 Kms
As an owner driver i required that both drivers fill in an in-depth medical declaration on an annual basis even though through the FORS Standards it is recommended every 5 years. It is mentioned in the driver’s handbook.
The company have recently implemented a recruitment policy to the company, that outlines that we as a company are committed to employing young drivers/employees where possible and training them into that role, in case I employ anther driver.
My future plans are to ensure we that the company safety record continues to be the highest standard, through driver training and fitment of vehicle safety equipment.
All future vehicles will be equipped to the highest safety standards, while paying attention to the environment. And I will continue to be trained to the highest standards possible.
Achieving Gold will help the company to maintain these goals and help to improve the industry’s safety standards, whilst looking towards reducing our emissions through less polluting vehicles.
Please note: All published FORS Gold case studies have been submitted by the accredited company named above and transcribed verbatim.