Newslink March

For all the latest news, see www.msagb.com
News update
DVSA tells PSV operators to
take out seat buckle guards
It’s a slim volume, easy to read, and
you’ll find plenty of stuff you can
effortlessly put into practice.
It also includes proven advice on
recruiting new pupils, which may soon
become vital knowledge as more people
tighten their belts.
The Top Ten Tips for Driving Instructors
is available from Kindle or Amazon. For
each purchaser who this month provides
an Amazon review (and lets me know), I
have a free gift – The Accredited
Question & Answer Techniques (as a
PDF). Put its contents into use, and with
less effort on your part, pupils will work
harder and retain more information. (This
is also available as a £4.99 purchase
through phil@philburman.com).
Although retired, I still care
passionately about the appalling rate of
new driver fatalities and serious injuries
– over 1,500 each year, according to the
road safety charity Brake. Help pupils
better understand the dangers by giving
each one my free Speed Kills leaflet.
Send an email requesting a Speed
Kills Master Copy to phil@philburman.
com. Its unique format can convince new
drivers to avoid taking the risks that kill!
Even better, you can customise Page 1
for your driving school (or I can do it for
you) and print copies as required. Ask
your pupils to give copies to their friends
too – it could also bring in some
welcome recommendations!
• The Top Ten Tips for Driving
Instructors costs just £3.97 (Kindle
version) or £9.97 for the paperback
edition (from Amazon), and you cannot
fail to benefit from following its advice.
Don’t forget to ask me for the free
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Do it now!
The DVSA has issued an email alert
to public service vehicle (PSV)
operators to advise them not to use
seatbelt buckle guards.
The DVSA says there is a risk that
the use of these guards could
prevent the release of a seatbelt
quickly in an emergency.
The agency points out that fitting
buckle guards to a seat belt
breaches the Road Vehicle
(Construction and Use) Regulations
1986, regulation 48 (4). It is a
‘deliberate and intended addition to
the seat belt’, and is not exempt
under regulation 48 (5) of the
regulations.
At this stage, DVSA is highlighting
the potential safety issues. If DVSA
examiners find evidence of the use
of seatbelt buckle guards during
routine roadside inspections, their
first action would be to offer advice
and guidance about vehicle and
passenger safety.
DVSA wants to work with
industry to develop a solution to
support the safe transport of PSV
users: it has no plans to target
enforcement action against their
use.
DVSA will continue to work with
stakeholders, including the
Departments for Education and
Transport, schools, local authorities
and parents so everyone affected
can be confident about using
transport services safely.
Great plan, says GEM - now let’s
see the fruits on the roads
Road safety and breakdown
organisation GEM Motoring Assist
has welcomed the announcement
from the Home Office that roads
policing is included in its Strategic
Policing Requirement.
The document sets priorities that
all police forces must address, and
GEM chief executive Neil Worth said
it was “an excellent development
which is long overdue.”
“Roads policing has been in
decline for too long. We supported
the Parliamentary Advisory Council
for Transport Safety (PACTS) 2020
report that was the first to call for
the inclusion of roads policing in the
Strategic Policing Requirement
(SPR). It is great to see that these
efforts have finally paid off.
“Some 1,700 people die on UK
roads each year. The government
needs to reverse the long-term
decline in roads policing and take
immediate steps to make our roads
safer and more secure.”
NEWSLINK n MARCH 2023 35