Ireland’s HSA launches work‑driving safety inspections as UK urges employers to manage road risks

The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) in Ireland has started a nationwide inspection campaign focused on work‑related driving. Inspectors will visit employers in sectors such as construction, manufacturing, engineering, healthcare and transport to check compliance with legal duties, including the inclusion of driving for work in safety statements, risk assessments, vehicle fitness, driver health and training. The HSA warns that failure to manage work‑related driving can lead to enforcement action.

Research in the United Kingdom shows that about one‑third of road deaths each year involve a working driver or rider – roughly 500 people – and that people who drive for work are 40 % more likely than other drivers to be involved in a collision. UK guidance stresses employers’ responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Road Traffic Act 1988 to ensure a safe driver, safe vehicle and safe journey, and to provide appropriate instruction, information and training.

Both campaigns aim to reduce fatalities and serious injuries by treating work‑related driving as a core occupational hazard and by encouraging employers to adopt robust risk‑management systems.