What is it?

The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act is a new law that comes into effect on 6th April 2008.

Why is it being introduced?

The new law is being introduced for
two main reasons:
• To rectify a defect in the old law
• To increase the pressure on companies to make Health and Safety a higher priority.

What was the defect in the old law?

Under the previous law, it was necessary to identify and prosecute an individual (usually within senior management) who was ultimately responsible for someone’s death. Unfortunately, it was not always possible to pinpoint a single guilty person ‐ especially in large organisations. As a result, only a very few, large companies were ever convicted of Corporate Manslaughter.
Under the new law, it is the company
(as a business entity) that is convicted
rather than an individual. However, if
individuals are still found to be liable,
then they can also be prosecuted under
other Health and Safety laws.

How are convictions made?

A company can be convicted if a person to whom a duty of care is owed is killed due to management failures or negligence. The law will seek whether the organisation complied with Health and Safety laws and guidelines.

Companies must demonstrate that
they are doing everything practicably
possible to protect the Health and
Safety of those at risk—whether they
be employees, customers or third parties.
Failure to demonstrate an effective
Health and Safety policy will be a
key factor in any decision to prosecute. Likewise, a strong Health and Safety culture could be instrumental in a successful defence of any prosecution.

High Risk Areas

There are two areas which account for
a large proportion of corporate manslaughter claims. These are:

• Lone Workers
• Vehicle Drivers

Both of these areas will be heavily scrutinised under the new Act.

Lone Workers

Lone workers are particularly vulnerable to hazardous situations. They will have varying levels of exposure to risk depending on their job role, industry sector and the nature of the environment in which they work.

Company Vehicles and Drivers

According to the Royal Society for the
Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), driving is the most dangerous work activity and road accidents are the UK’s biggest occupational safety issue. The statistics speak for themselves:

• 26% of deaths on Britain's roads
involve at‐work drivers
• 33% of company cars are involved in
a collision each year
• 30 per cent of employees who drive
as part of their work have been involved in one or more accidents in
the previous three years. Half of
these crashes occurred while they
were driving as part of their work
• Approximately 40 per cent of fatigue
related crashes involve an individual
driving as part of their work.

What are the penalties?

• Unlimited Fines
• Remedial Action Orders
• Orders to publicly announce the offence

Should you be concerned?

Your company is still as liable now as it always has been ‐ the law just makes it easier for you to be prosecuted! If you take your company’s Health and Safety obligations seriously, then you
are unlikely to be in breach of the new provisions.

What should you do now?

Companies should familiarise themselves with the new law, review their systems and processes for managing Health and Safety policies and ensure that they are adequate. Particular attention should be paid to the way in which business activities are organised and managed by senior management. Companies need to identify, and document, each potential hazard that could cause a fatality. For each hazard identified, companies have a duty of care obligation to ensure that reasonable steps have been taken to protect a person’s safety.

How can SimplyTrak help?

1 Records Management
Employers must be seen to be actively assessing, managing, documenting and acting upon potential risks and hazards faced by their workers. For example,
they must provide training for problem drivers, issue warnings for speeding and ensure that vehicle checks are complete.
The SimplyTrak system manages and documents all the activities of your ’at risk’ assets. It stores vehicle information as well as all driver/user activity.
Alerts can automatically be sent when a high risk situation is encountered (e.g.
speeding, entry into a banned area or if a vehicle has begun a journey without completing proper checks). It can also notify the appropriate personnel when a vehicle is due for a service, the MoT or insurance is due to expire or when
the driver’s licence details are due for inspection.
Historical data can be used for trend analysis to help identify changes in risk exposure over time.

2 Lone Worker Protection Devices
Contact with lone workers and knowledge of their whereabouts is a key Health and Safety requirement. Tracking devices provide valuable protection
for staff, giving them access to a
lifeline and means of communication
when most needed. They can also protect companies against potential court proceedings in the event of an accident or attack.

The Facts

• The new law affects ALL companies

• The number of prosecutions is
expected to escalate

• Companies have a Duty of
Care towards employees, customers and the general public

• Employers are directly responsible
for their employees' actions while on company business.

• The law applies whether on
or off business premises, and
even if it’s in the employee’s
own vehicle

• Employers will be found guilty
if employees were working for long hours either at the employer's request, or where the employer has failed to
monitor their working hours

• More than 50% of companies
fail to check that employees, using their own vehicles for work, have insured them for business use

SimplyTrak supplies a wide range of
personal tracking and lone worker protection devices. As well as providing location based information these solutions can:

• Trigger automatic alerts for ‘mandown’, situations
• Open a voice call to third parties
when in high risk situations
• Automatically, or manually, send
‘SOS’, ’panic’ and ’help’ requests to
email users, other mobile phones
and Contact Centres
• Automate alerts for e.g. speeding
• Automate notification of entry to
and exit from high‐risk areas
• Provide listen‐in monitoring for dangerous situations

3 Vehicle and Driver Monitoring
Regular monitoring and assessment of
your drivers and vehicles helps eliminate potential liabilities. The SimplyTrak system will collect, store, analyse and help you act upon key data to optimise your business and help you comply with the new Act.

How Much Will This Cost My Business?

GPS tracking solutions save money and deliver proven Return on Investment. They can also increase revenues through asset optimization and help you comply with key policies and legislation.Can you afford not to consider them as part of your business strategy?