Chain of Responsibility Laws require heavy vehicle businesses be proactive with safety management to avoid or minimise risk to the public.

First introduced in Australia in 2014 and expanded in 2018, Chain of Responsibility Laws require heavy vehicle businesses to take a proactive approach to safety management to avoid or minimise risk to the public.

With rising statistics around VRU injury or death, the glaring risks of heavy vehicle operation, and the widespread availability of solutions to mitigate these risks, heavy vehicle businesses in 2023 risk serious breaches of the law by not taking proactive safety measurements.

Here’s a brief overview of the law, the risks, and solutions to ensure businesses fulfill their Chain of Responsibility Obligations.

The Chain of Responsibility (CoR) Law

The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator (NHVR) advises that the Chain of Responsibility (CoR) law is in-place to ensure everyone who works with heavy vehicles (over 4.5 tonnes) – from the business that employs a driver to the place where goods are delivered – is accountable for safety.

Under this law, businesses that own or contract heavy vehicles have a primary duty to ensure the safety of their transport activities, so far as is reasonably practicable. The NHVR assesses what is ‘reasonably practicable’ based on:

1. the probability of an incident
2. the harm that could result
3. what you know about potential risks and how to control them
4. whether controls are available and suitable
5. the cost of controls in proportion to the risk

The primary duties of the business under CoR law include:

1. identify the risks to public safety that arise from their transport activities
2. work out what measures would be reasonably practicable for you to implement to ensure safety
3. implement those measures and monitor whether they work

Known Risks and Solutions

Three of the most common risks associated with heavy vehicles are speeding, fatigue management and blind spots. The latter is the one that is not driver dependent and a risk associated with all heavy vehicles.

Helping to migrate against these risks is a core focus for SGESCO-MAX and has led to the development of several innovative solutions to protect the public. We help businesses comply with their CoR primary duties by providing a range of control measures, including:

In addition to the control measures, SGESCO-MAX provides a range of assets to help businesses comply with CoR training requirements, relating to our safety solutions, including:

• Toolbox kits to allow education through standard businesses practices.
• An online training portal which provides an interactive training experience for operators to learn about our systems – while tracking their progress and completion rates.
• Training and support documentation to allow effective fault finding and maintenance.

High Risk of Being in Breach of CoR

The Heavy Vehicle National Regulator recommends safety management includes regular reporting, including to executive officers, and documenting or recording all actions taken to manage safety.

In the case of a prosecution, each party in the chain needs to show they’ve taken every reasonable step to prevent a breach of the law and taken proactive safety measures. Companies would be hard-pressed to use cost of solutions as an argument for not being “reasonably practical” given the economical solutions readily available on the market.

Given the known risks – and the available solutions – heavy vehicle companies have no excuses for not ensuring safety.

Get in touch today to discuss how we can help you comply with your CoR Primary Duties and provide a safer world.