Shortfall of 22000 van drivers
Possible shortfall of 22,000 van drivers in 2022 - what can you do to protect your business?
There is already a well publicised LGV / HGV driver shortage and we could also see a van driver shortage.
Vehicle insurance company GoCompare carried out research among the UK’s van drivers (Research Data ) and discovered that around two-thirds of van drivers have struggled with work-related stress and/or the financial burdens associated with the job. Unfortunately, this has resulted in approx. 15.6% of them planning to quit their job in the next 12 months. If all 15.6% leave it would result in 44,000 van drivers leaving the industry and with 22,500 new drivers regularly joining each year, this would leave a shortfall of some 22,000 van drivers.
The main issues quoted as reasons for planning to leave were fatigue, a heavy workload and unsociable long hours, as well as deadlines, difficult customers, work relationships with managers and poor job security which were all impacting on their mental health.
[ NOTE: Government guidance for Driver’s hours of good’s vehicles is no more than 10 hours in a 24 hour period. ]
Companies would therefore do well to manage the workload of their drivers and provide delivery routes and deadlines that are realistic and achievable, based on the latest traffic data. Otherwise, they could be constantly recruiting to try and fill the ever-increasing van driver vacancies.
For a goods vehicle driver, having a delivery route plotted for them and also knowing that it is possible to achieve without breaking speed limits or driving excessive hours, will reduce the stress from having to meet targets and also means that they will drive more safely and not feel pressured to meet deadlines.
- Click here to discover more about Delivery Route Planning
- Click here to discover more about Route Optimisation for deliveries