Companies employing drivers should create a supportive work environment that recognises the growing issue of type 2 diabetes, to keep people safe and in work for longer.

The presence or contribution of diabetes, or whether people were driving for work, is not recorded in collision data

That’s according to a new action plan drawn up by the Diabetes Safety Organisation (DSO) and the road transport and safety sectors, including Driving for Better Business, to help companies manage the risk and support drivers with the condition.

People who drive for a living have double the risk of developing type 2 diabetes – presenting risks when employees are unable to manage diabetes effectively while at work.

The new diabetes safe driving action plan sets out how companies can help drivers living with and managing the condition, while also having a positive effect on the company’s bottom line and employee retention.

The plan has been created by the DSO, along with a panel of 10 road transport and safety experts and industry leaders, on the back of a consultation jointly led by DSO, the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS) and Driving for Better Business (DfBB), the free-to-access National Highways business engagement programme.

More than five million people in the UK have diabetes and one in four are unaware they have the condition.

Diabetes is a known and foreseeable risk in the workplace. Employers are legally required to manage diabetes risks and may be liable even where an employee chooses not to disclose the condition.

Risks occur when employees are unable to manage diabetes effectively while at work and road transport businesses must be ready to manage these risks.

Diabetic hypos and hypers can cause significant safety incidents. For every thousand employees there will be an estimated 1-3 severe hypos happening in the workplace per month.

Nerve damage is a driving safety risk. Half of all people with diabetes experience some form of nerve damage in their feet which affects driving accuracy and safety. People with severe damage have three times as many driving incidents.

Yet, the presence or contribution of diabetes, or whether people were driving for work, is not recorded in collision data.

Meanwhile, current requirements for medical fitness-to-drive assessments do not mitigate several key diabetes risks: tests are not required until age 45; they do not cover grey fleet vehicles and focus mainly on the hypo risk.

Experts also warn that where medical assessments are provided, those most at risk may avoid screening because of known medical conditions and fear of job loss.

But a supportive work environment that recognises the growing issue of type 2 diabetes would avoid the current stigma associated with living with and managing the condition, as well as having a positive effect on a company’s bottom line and employee retention.

Kate Walker, managing director of DSO, said: “‘Diabetes safe’ driving is achieved when people with diabetes who drive for a living are supported by their employer to manage their condition effectively. This improves road safety for all road users and helps people with diabetes avoid health complications that may cause their licence to be revoked and be forced into early exit from the workforce.”

Experts have also called for diabetes to be investigated as a possible occupational disease and for recognition from various stakeholders such as the Department for Business and Trade, Department for Health and Social Care and others.

Walker went on: “Our next steps are to share preliminary findings among those who took part in the discussion, and to continue with further consultation sessions across the transport sectors to shape and inform recommendations in a report due to be published by DSO, PACTS and Driving for Better Business later this year.

“We thank everyone who contributes to this vital debate. Discussion and consultation now may help to secure the future of employment in the transport sector.”