Brake, the road safety charity, is calling on small businesses with employees who drive for work to explore how they can cut costs and improve road safety, using its free comprehensive guide. The guide is published through Brake's Fleet Safety Forum with the support of the Department for Transport.

At-work road crashes are estimated to cost UK employers £2.7 billion a year [1]. For any business with staff who drive for work, improving employees' safety on the roads is essential in bringing down costs and preventing catastrophe. Preventing crashes, bumps and scrapes can deliver multiple business benefits like lowering insurance premiums, improving reputation and staff morale, and reducing lost time.

The guide outlines practical, low-cost steps small businesses can take to save money, and protect their employees and the wider community from the devastation a crash can cause. It includes first steps in drawing up a policy and communicating safe driving messages to drivers, with sample policies and links to downloadable tools and further guidance.

It contains case studies from organisations that have successfully reduced their road risk and benefitted their business as a result. It covers how to: measure and benchmark fleet safety; gain senior buy-in; manage and reduce risk to drivers, vehicles, and journeys; and continually improve fleet safety.

To request a free copy of the guide, visit:http://www.brakepro.org/tools/practitioner-tools/2-uncategorised/176-essential-guide-to-fleet-safety

Laura Woods, research and information officer at Brake, said: "Ensuring the safety of staff driving on work time can deliver significant business benefits, including reduced insurance premiums and improved reputation. Driving is the riskiest thing most people do at work, so it's vital for businesses of any size to manage this risk. It can be daunting for smaller organisations to start putting in place effective fleet safety practices, but this guide sets out clearly where to begin and tried and tested methods. It also directs you to lots of useful tools available from Brake and other agencies. I would urge all small businesses with employees who drive on work time to use this guide to drive down their road risk, saving money and lives."