Alphabet offers free licence check and driver risk assessment on new cars

21 October 2008

Every funded vehicle supplied by Alphabet from October will now come with a free driver licence check and online driver risk assessment in what the fleet provider claims is an industry first.

Paul Hollick, general manager sales development, said: “From now on, this is a standard feature of all our vehicle funding products from contract hire and contract purchase through to ECO schemes. Alphabet is once again leading the way for our industry by making driver safety an integral part of the acquisition process.”

Every Alphabet vehicle contract will now include a free driver licence check for one licence-holder, which includes direct verification with the DVLA. Customers will also receive a free online driver risk assessment for one driver, developed using expert research carried out by Cranfield University.

Research for the Alphabet DataCheck™ Driver Licence Checking service shows that three in every 100 drivers checked will have a previous ban, one in 300 drivers will have a revoked or expired licence and one in 500 drivers will be currently banned. Alphabet’s online driver risk assessment is specifically designed to assess risk factors related to driving at-work.

Alphabet manages around 43,000 vehicles in the UK and Mr Hollick said: “Driver safety is of paramount concern for fleet operators and, with this unique product, Alphabet is the only company supplying these two essential components of risk management free with every vehicle delivered. We are building active risk management processes into every vehicle that we supply.”

The Alphabet DataCheck™ Driver Licence Checking service is a proactive, fully electronic service that delivers individual licence reports through a secure web site. ‘At a glance’ summaries show details of penalty points, endorsements and bans, categories licensed to drive and expiry dates. There is also the option to drill down for complete record details of the licence in question.

Alphabet’s DriverMetrics® Online Driver Risk Assessment scientifically evaluates each driver’s profile across 10 behavioural risk factors, which are scored in relation to many thousands of company car drivers who have taken the assessment. As well as identifying ‘high risk’ individuals, the system, when used widely, acts as an electronic audit trail, proving that an organisation is taking steps to manage its duty of care obligations.