Transport Sector: Safety Awareness Reduces Workplace Accidents
Author: Hannes Rügheimer
With the booming online retail market, the number of packages being delivered is increasing significantly. As the volume of deliveries grows, so too do workplace accidents in the transport and delivery sector. Therefore, raising awareness in the areas of safety and occupational health is essential. Specialized training programs are targeted towards this objective.
With time pressure, extensive workloads, and often bulky and heavy shipments, delivery drivers face challenging conditions on a daily basis. At the same time, the number of products ordered online and delivered by drivers continues to rise. It is therefore no surprise that the industry is facing high accident rates. For example, the German Social Accident Insurance (DGUV) recorded a total of 100,284 reportable workplace accidents in the trade and goods logistics category for 2024 – plus 59,856 more in the separately recorded category “Commercial Transport, Postal Logistics and Telecommunications.”
These high figures are due to both traffic accidents on the road and personal injuries sustained while handling shipments – for example, due to incorrect lifting and carrying, heavy packages falling from the loading area, and similar incidents.
Safety training helps prevent accidents at work
Consequently, there is an urgent need to take action in order to put a stop to this worrying trend and reduce the number of accidents again. One important approach to achieving this is safety training for employees. “Delivery drivers are certainly the primary target group for such trainings. But it is also equally important to provide managers with further training on the relevant topics,“ Claudia Ball points out. At DEKRA, she is the project manager responsible for training and education in the transport sector. “If managers are not aware of the measures and conditions that can prevent or reduce workplace accidents, there is little chance that drivers themselves will be able to implement them in their everyday work.”
"Fewer accidents simply save costs.“
Claudia Ball, project manager responsible for training and education in the transport sector at DEKRA
This is especially relevant given that there are additional benefits for companies to be gained when employees at all levels develop an awareness of risk prevention and occupational safety: “Fewer accidents simply save costs,” Claudia Ball summarizes. “For instance, downtime can be reduced, experienced employees remain available to work for longer, and, last but not least, companies can meet legal and self-defined compliance requirements and improve their brand perception in the market through targeted training and education.”
Wide range of training content and formats
The specific safety requirements and measures vary depending on the delivery company and the core business. Drivers of cargo bikes will face different requirements than drivers of small vans or trucks. Fleet management and resource planning address different issues (such as risk management and operational efficiency) than working at a loading dock (for example, load securing and the safe use of tools ranging from forklifts to lifting platforms). In road traffic, different questions arise (e.g., defensive driving or legal stopping for loading and unloading) than in home delivery (e.g., safe and legally compliant handover to the customer). Meanwhile, other aspects have an impact on several different points along the supply chain—lifting and carrying heavy loads safely, for example.
The training program offered by DEKRA is modular in structure to best meet the individual requirements of each company or application. DEKRA has developed a total of eight individual modules that can be combined as needed or completed sequentially over a period of time:
1. Establishing a safety culture
2. Integrating safety into everyday processes
3. An Introduction to safety for transport and deliveries
4. Road safety for professional drivers
5. Road safety for cargo bike riders
6. Road safety for truck drivers
7. Handling heavy and bulky objects
8. Individual training options
The individual modules are designed for course times ranging between 3 to 8 hours (modules 1 and 4: 16 hours, module 3: 16 to 14 hours). The schedule is coordinated with the client and customized to individual needs.
Find detailed information on DEKRA's training and education offerings
here.
Driving simulators and virtual reality training as part of the training
“Ultimately, it makes the most sense to tailor the specific training content to the individual company,” DEKRA expert Claudia Ball reports. Incidentally, this applies not only to the content, but also to the training formats. Depending on the learning objectives and target group, the training can be realized as e-learning, in a virtual classroom, or in traditional face-to-face teaching. In classroom formats, for example, driving simulators, virtual reality training, or other simulations can also be integrated. “Hybrid concepts, which combine several virtual training chapters with one day of classroom training, for example, have also proven very successful in practice,” says Claudia Ball.
The assessment of learning objectives can be just as flexible. E-learning courses typically end with a knowledge test conducted on screen. Classroom formats can end with a traditional written and/or practical oral exam. In both cases, a certificate can attest to the successful completion of the training.
Initial feedback extremely positive
“We have been conducting training in this area in the UK for some time now,” says Claudia Ball. “The participants are enthusiastic – and this applies to both drivers and their employers. The Net Promoter Score we have calculated is above 80." A fantastic result. DEKRA now plans to continue its UK success in Germany and other European countries. The aim is to ensure that, despite rising parcel volumes, the number of work-related accidents in the transport and delivery industry drops as quickly and sustainably as possible.