Freight Transport Association launches agency accreditation scheme

February 19, 2014

The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has launched a new scheme which will encourage and promote improvement within the driver agency sector.

The Driver Agency Accreditation Scheme will provide verification to both employees and customers, showing that driver agencies promote good practice. It also hopes to reduce corporate and operational risk and highlight an areas of non-compliance.

All companies accredited will also be audited, contributing to a high standard within the industry.

The voluntary initiative has been developed together with the FTA and key members of the industry. FTA chief executive Theo de Pencier said: “Ensuring high standards are maintained is always a priority for our members, but it may prove to be particularly important in a year when economic growth could increase the need to access a flexible workforce.”

He added that the scheme provides industry recognised standards to promote continuous improvement.

The scheme was announced at the FTA and Department for Transport Listening to Industry Event, where Transport Minister Robert Goodwell said: “I welcome the Freight Transport Association’s scheme to help ensure that high standards for drivers are maintained. I hope this measure helps to give driver agencies a recognised structure for improvement.”

Every driver agency that wants to be accredited by the scheme will have to sign a statement of intent and the FTA will undertake an independent audit of current processes and systems to ensure that core business standards, driver recruitment standards and driver management standards are all up to scratch.