Fleets need to redouble their efforts on drug-driving, FleetCheck is warning, as a leading police officer reported that the issue was a bigger problem than drink-driving in some constabularies over the Xmas period.
Speaking to the BBC this week, chief constable Jo Shiner of the National Police Chiefs Council said there was a “social acceptance” of drug taking and driving, particularly among younger people, and that some forces made more arrests than for drink-driving during December.
Peter Golding, managing director at FleetCheck said the trend was a warning to fleets who needed to ensure that employees realised that a zero-tolerance culture was in place.
“Generally, drink-driving has now become completely unacceptable socially but there are some signs that the same is not necessarily true of certain drugs, especially when it comes to people in their 20s, 30s and even 40s. This is something that the BBC reporting suggests but which we additionally occasionally hear from fleets on an anecdotal basis.
“Also, many people do not realise that drugs such as cannabis tend to stay in the system for a much longer time than alcohol. An employee could be using these drugs socially on a Friday or Saturday and then climb into a car or van on Monday morning and be unaware that they are unsafe to drive.”