Hands Off for Company Car Drivers

British company car drivers are generally - if not universally - complying with new mobile phone legislation, according to a new study by NOP World Automotive. Over 85% of those using a phone whilst in their company car have a hands-free installation.

There are around 4 million company car drivers in the UK, and a majority cover at least 20,000 miles per annum. Legislation introduced on 1st December 2003 means that drivers face a penalty of £30 or up to £1,000 on conviction in court if they use a handheld mobile. They can still be fined even if they use a hands-free if police feel they 'fail to have proper control'. Almost all respondents were aware of the new legislation and over 80% indicated they had seen or heard some form of advertising relating to the change.

The study reveals that 93% of drivers entitled to a company car have a mobile phone, but only 60% of these use their phone in their car. 80% of those drivers who previously used a hand-held phone say they will alter their behaviour as a result of the new legislation - leaving, actually, quite a high number declaring that they will flout the law.

As well as most drivers, employers are also taking responsibility. For those drivers that use their mobile in the car, two-thirds indicated their company had a policy with regard to its use, rising to 80% of companies with larger fleets [over 100 cars] but only 54% for companies running less than 100 cars.

Jim Farrell, AD at NOP World Automotive, points out that it is early days yet for the legislation. 'The results of the study show high awareness of the safety regulations... However it remains to be seen if drivers will become nonchalant about the hands-free requirement if offenders are not routinely prosecuted, or whether it will become as habitual as wearing a seat belt'.

Additional questions show that only a very small proportion of drivers have any sort of telematics applications installed in their car, and that drivers may worry about the implications for their freedom. Such applications can help with route planning, vehicle tracking, remote vehicle diagnostics, monitoring driving patterns, optimising fuel consumption and other needs, but only 35% thought such vehicle monitoring would be very or quite helpful and 31% suggested it would be very or quite intrusive.

Corporate Car is an online syndicated research study conducted annually by NOP World Automotive, with a core sample of more than 1,000 UK workers who are entitled to a company car.

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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