Grey fleet compliance: staff cars used for work, checked like your own
When staff drive their own cars for work, you still need to know those cars are taxed, have an MOT and are insured for business use. VCT puts them on the same list as your vans and checks them every night.
What is a grey fleet?
Your grey fleet is every privately owned vehicle that someone drives for your business. A surveyor driving to site visits in their own car, a care worker going between clients, a sales rep on a car allowance: they're all part of it.
HSE's guidance describes a grey fleet vehicle as one that a worker owns and drives for business purposes, and says cars run under cash allowance schemes count too. It also says ordinary commuting is not generally classed as driving for work.
Grey fleet is easy to lose track of. The car isn't on your insurance or your asset register, the MOT reminder goes to the driver's home, and the business insurance is something they sorted out once and may have forgotten about at renewal.
Grey fleet duty of care: what HSE says
HSE's guidance for employers whose workers drive for work says health and safety law applies to work on the road in the same way it does on a fixed site. It states that the law applies to grey fleet vehicles as well as company vehicles.
In practice, HSE expects employers to:
- Manage the risks to workers who drive for work, including through a risk assessment
- Make sure privately owned vehicles used for work are safe
- Have a clear policy that unsafe vehicles should not be driven
- Check that drivers' licences, insurance and MOTs are valid and up to date
HSE also points out that an MOT certificate only covers basic defects and doesn't guarantee a vehicle is safe. Read the detail on keeping vehicles safe and making sure drivers are safe.
Our guide to grey fleet duty of care goes through it step by step.
Staff cars on the same list as company vehicles
In VCT, a staff car is a vehicle like any other. It sits in the fleet table and the Action centre next to your vans, with a Grey fleet view one click away.
- Road tax checked with DVLA and the MOT checked with DVSA every night
- Business insurance expiry shown next to company vehicles
- Full DVSA MOT history, including advisories worth watching, such as a tyre near the legal limit
- Reminder emails before an MOT or tax runs out, with a Due soon window of 30 days
- MOT, tax and insurance dates in your Outlook, Google or Apple Calendar through the calendar feed
From a driver's own car to a checked record
- The driver adds their car. From the driver app on their phone, so the office doesn't have to chase registrations.
- VCT checks it overnight. Tax with DVLA and the MOT with DVSA, then again every night after that.
- Insurance expiry is tracked. The business insurance expiry date sits next to your company vehicles, so you can see who needs to renew.
- Problems come to you. An expired MOT or missing tax goes to the top of the Action centre, and the weekly round-up lists what's due in the next 30 days.
With the text-message add-on, VCT can also text a driver when the MOT, tax or insurance on the car they use is about to run out.
Employee own car for business use checks: the licence too
A checked car is only half of it. HSE's guidance also expects you to check the person driving it. VCT keeps your licence check records in the same place as the vehicles.
- Record each licence check and the driver's consent in VCT
- Drivers can share their DVLA check code from the driver app
- See when each driver's next check is due
You make the check itself on gov.uk using DVLA's check someone's driving licence information service. You need the driver's permission, the last 8 characters of their licence number and a check code they create, which can be used once within 21 days.
One system for vans, trucks and staff cars
Most businesses with a grey fleet also run some company vehicles. VCT covers both in one place, with daily walkaround checks, a defect work queue and bookings for the company vans. See small fleet management software for the full picture, or fleet MOT and tax reminders for how the nightly checks work.
Everything is in one price: £3.50 per vehicle a month, falling to £2.50 per vehicle for bigger fleets (minimum £35 a month), ex VAT. Monthly, with no contract.
Grey fleet compliance FAQs
What counts as grey fleet?
HSE describes a grey fleet vehicle as one a worker owns and drives for business. Cars run under a cash allowance scheme count as grey fleet too. Ordinary commuting is not generally treated as driving for work.
Does an employer's duty of care cover staff using their own cars?
HSE's guidance says the law on driving for work applies to grey fleet vehicles as well as company vehicles. VCT helps you keep the records. It doesn't give legal advice, so read HSE's guidance and take advice for your own business.
Does VCT check that a staff car has business insurance?
VCT tracks the business insurance expiry date for each staff car and shows it next to your company vehicles. It doesn't contact insurers, so it can't tell you what a policy covers. Ask to see the certificate.
Are driving licence checks automatic?
Not yet. Today you record licence checks and the driver's consent in VCT, drivers can share a DVLA check code from the driver app, and VCT shows when each check is due. Automatic licence checking with DVLA is coming soon.
Can drivers add their own car?
Yes. A driver can add the car they use for work from the driver app. VCT then checks its road tax with DVLA and its MOT with DVSA every night, the same as your company vehicles.
How much does it cost?
Grey fleet tracking is part of VCT's one price: £3.50 per vehicle a month, falling to £2.50 per vehicle for bigger fleets (minimum £35 a month), ex VAT. Monthly, with no contract.
See it with one of your own vehicles
Enter a registration and your email on the homepage. We'll send you a link to a demo of VCT with your vehicle looked up live with DVLA and DVSA.