Within the driver training industry (and it is an industry, with it’s own pressures and commercial ends), we are bombarded with case studies proving that one company or another has managed to reduce incidents by massive amounts.

Unfortunately, it seems that no-one really knows how this works!

IOSH and the TRL published a report, which looked into the available studies in an attempt to discover exactly what it is that companies do in order to achieve the results that the press releases herald. (pdf report – Work related road safety literature review-1).

Unfortunately for those of us who have for many years prided ourselves on the quality of our training, to be told that there is no evidence that driver training has any effect is actually quite difficult to hear.

However, hear it we must. We have to accept that there is a limited role for skills based driver training, which is just that – to teach skills. To complement this, we need to concentrate on changing attitudes and improving the accuracy and understanding of drivers’ risk perceptions.

It may surprise some that, according to the IOSH/TRL report, the best way to do this may not be in a vehicle at all.