Driver CPC deadline passed

10 September was the deadline by which all professional ‘acquired rights’ lorry drivers needed to have completed their first block of Driver CPC periodic training, in order to continue working.

The deadline for bus and coach drivers passed at the same time last year.

In a press statement, Alastair Peoples, chief executive at the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency, said: “I would like to thank the bus, coach and haulage industry for their support, including the drivers and operators who have committed to the training and the wider industry who have been invaluable in helping with the introduction of Driver CPC.

“Driver CPC has a lot to offer and by keeping their skills up to date professional drivers are helping to make Britain’s roads amongst the safest in the world.”

Joan Aitken, lead traffic commissioner on Driver CPC, added: “Traffic commissioners want to congratulate the HGV industry on reaching this milestone. Trainers, drivers and employers have worked hard to ensure drivers are qualified in time and traffic commissioners look forward to seeing the same high level of compliance that was shown by the bus and coach deadline a year ago.

“For those operators and drivers who have not caught up with this deadline, then the message has to be – get this sorted now. Failing to complete the hours and be equipped with drivers holding the driver qualification card (DQC) runs the real risk of action being taken against drivers and operators.”

While recent DVSA figures suggested that the majority of professional truck drivers had acquired Driver CPC as the deadline passed, it was clear that many would not complete their training in time to continue to work.

Large goods vehicle (LGV) licence holders have had five years from 2009 in which to undertake 35 hours of approved training if they wish to continue to drive commercially after that date.

Figures released by the Department for Transport at the end of July showed that over 800,000 drivers were engaged in the Driver CPC training process, and over 564,000 had completed their 35 hours of training.

However, these figures do not differentiate between LGV drivers in the run-up to their deadline and PCV drivers who reached their deadline last year.

Neither the Department for Transport nor any of the freight or passenger transport trade groups could produce an accurate breakdown of how many LGV and PCV licence holders are actually currently active in the industry, so it was not possible to say with any confidence whether sufficient drivers would be trained.

But what was clear from research carried out by Transport Operator among Driver CPC training providers is that demand for training in the run-up to the deadline was exceeding supply, and that some drivers who did require the qualification would not obtain it before the deadline.

Trev King, a trainer at Tyro Training of Skipton, reported that some drivers were still, as he put it, “in denial and ignorant.” Nevertheless, demand for training at Tyro in five-day blocks was actually spilling over the deadline and into subsequent weeks.

The imposition of a deadline mid-week was causing problems for many, according to Peter Shepherd, the managing director of DCPC specialist trainer The Training Service of Blackburn.

He also reported plenty of demand for training post-deadline, having been fully-booked since mid-August, and that some drivers were being told by employers to book holiday from the deadline until the time when they had completed their training.

Mr Shepherd knows of one operator which has had to resign from a contract because of a complete failure to recognise the implications of the Driver CPC, with 15 drivers having done no training at all, and no time left in which to train them.

“In most cases I blame the operators for the mess they have got into,” he told Transport Operator.

“Their response to the DCPC as a whole has been disgraceful. Self-employed and agency drivers may need to sort it themselves, but those in full-time employment should be sorted by their employers. They wouldn’t dream of telling the FLT driver to renew his licence at the weekend and pay for it himself!”

Some operators have, of course, organised the training in an orderly manner.

Somerset temperature-controlled haulier Nagel Langdons had all its drivers trained by June. HR manager Colin Snape said its in-house training facility was now fully-booked to the deadline, training external agency drivers, sub-contractors, and even drivers from local fleets in the municipal sector, where it appeared many managers thought the training regulations would not apply to them because their operations fell outside EU hours law.

At pollution control specialist Braemar Howells, transport manager Malcolm Wood asserted that the government should have ensured operators had an obligation to train and not left everything to individual drivers, who have found themselves “out on a limb.”

“We’ve organised the training for all our 20-plus drivers,” he said. “We have several 3.5-tonne vans fitted with tachos that tow trailers and we are putting these drivers through the CPC. The feedback from these drivers is very positive, especially on the tacho and load restraining side.”

Malcolm Davie, training manager at Commercial Operator Training Solutions of Swansea, said: “I suspect that there was an assumption by government that the employer would pick up the tab.

“This was probably a reasonable assumption to make given the evidence that they had before them – the UK government will always invite ‘representatives of the industry’ to make recommendations and take part in consultations.

“Unfortunately it is generally the big players that take the time out to take part and these big players generally do pick up the tab.

“To be fair, most of them were engaged in the training of their staff long before Driver CPC came along and, for them, this was just a formalisation of what they were doing and it did not mean much in the way of extra costs – the training was already in place as were the trainers and the facilities.

“What was not taken into account was that the majority of operators actually operate less than five vehicles and these operators are not generally able to finance training departments, and will therefore leave the driver to fend for themselves.”

London based self-employed tipper driver Keith Smith said: “In my opinion drivers need to look at themselves. If the company they work for was not doing anything about Driver CPC they should have asked the question and dealt with the issue.

“I have heard so many comments along the lines of ‘it won’t affect me,’ ‘I already hold a CPC,’  ‘I will worry about it if it happens.’ Same old, same old excuses.”

Whatever the operator experience has been so far, some drivers at least now accept Driver CPC as a necessary evil.

Peter Shepherd reports: “I also have a few booked in for a five-day course straight after the deadline so they can do their ‘next’ 35 hours and get a DQC to 2024 and not ‘bother with this s***e again!’.”

Commenting on enforcement intentions post-deadline, DVSA has stated that unqualified drivers will initially receive a fixed penalty notice for £50 if they have failed to undertake sufficient Driver CPC training.

“Drivers who have not completed their CPC training and drivers who fail to produce evidence that they have completed their CPC training will be issued with a £50 fixed penalty.

“A verbal warning will be given to drivers who can produce evidence that their CPC card is yet to arrive, is lost or has been stolen.

“Those who continue to drive without completing their training will be prosecuted, issued with a maximum fine of £1,000 and be reported to the traffic commissioner along with their employer.”

Drivers who have completed their 35 hours of training, but who are waiting for their card to arrive, would therefore be advised to carry the certificates of attendance from their five Driver CPC training courses to avoid being issued with a fixed penalty notice.

Jack Semple, Road Haulage Association (RHA) director of policy, said: “Five years on, we can see a progressive evolution in attitudes to Driver CPC. Hauliers increasingly talk in terms of benefits to their businesses and, following these comments, the RHA has launched a competition to promote value in DCPC training.

“The industry has the opportunity to progress towards genuine continuing professional development, which enhances drivers’ skills and knowledge and helps to transform both the perception and reality of the profession of lorry driving within a progressive service industry.”

James Firth, head of road freight and enforcement policy for the Freight Transport Association (FTA), said: “HGV drivers operate in a safety-critical environment, and it is important that they are well informed about the rules surrounding the industry.  Driver CPC provides the framework to deliver appropriate and correct information to every single driver in the haulage industry.

“FTA is congratulating its members who have ensured their drivers are compliant with the new obligations and have recognised the importance of continued professionalism and training.”

He added: “The logistics industry is not going to grind to a halt today as some have suggested – the figures indicate that most drivers will have got it done.  But the deadline highlights a more fundamental problem of driver supply in the future.

“The cost of getting your HGV licence, the cost to companies of insuring young drivers, the lack of facilities for drivers on the road network and a generally negative image of the profession are all barriers to young people recognising the logistics industry for what it really is: a challenging and rewarding sector, which uses cutting edge technology to solve problems on a daily basis to keep the economic heartbeat of the UK strong and uninterrupted.”  

The FTA also voiced its concerns over whether agency drivers would be Driver CPC-ready, particularly in light of the forthcoming Christmas peak. While normally fleet managers look to agencies to supply temporary drivers to meet peak demand periods, the association said, surveys of agency driver availability suggest that there may not be the necessary numbers of qualified drivers to meet demand.

Firth continued: “The next few weeks will be a critical period in the road freight sector for government, enforcement agencies and the wider economy.

“A combination of the fast-recovering economy, the Driver CPC deadline, a shortage of qualified agency drivers and a series of administrative changes to driver licensing arrangements are creating the ‘perfect storm’ for fleet manager and piling pressure on scheduling plans for the Christmas peak period.”