Freedom of Information Publication Scheme
Protective Marking: / Not protectively Marked / Publication (Y/N): / N
Title: / Police Driver and Vehicles Policy - Polcoll and Driving Standards Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)
Summary: / This SOP supports the Police Driver and Vehicle Policy in maintaining and enhancing the current high driving standards by supporting, educating supervising police drivers.
Branch / OCU: / Roads and Transport Policing Command
Date created: / 07 July 2016 / Review date: / February 2018 / Version: / 2.11
Author: / Roads Policy & Driving Standards Unit

Introduction

This SOP supports the Police Driver Vehicle Policy. It contains guidance to police driver on the investigation of police collision and the maintenance of driver standards by effective intervention.

Application

This Standard Operating Procedure applies with immediate effect.

All police officers and police staff, including the extended police family and those working voluntarily or under contract to the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPC) or the Commissioner must be aware of, and are required to comply with, all relevant Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) policy and associated procedures.

However, this SOP applies in particular to officers and staff in the following roles:

  • Police Officers, Metropolitan Special Constabulary and police staff who are either currently, or wish to become, authorised drivers
  • Supervising officers of any of the above
  • Heads of units or BOCU commanders
  • Fleet managers
  • Safe Driving Managers
  • Members of the police volunteer program

N.B. This list is not intended to be exhaustive

Polcoll & Driving Standards

Section 1 - Driving Assessments

  • General
  • Assessors and verifiers
  • Police Staff assessors and verifiers
  • Regular driving assessments (every 3-5 years)
  • Assessing drivers rejoining or transferring to the MPS
  • Assessing drivers trained by outside agencies or constabularies
  • Assessment of drivers involved in 3 blameworthy collisions within 1 year of training
  • Assessing drivers within any 12-month Period

Section 2 - Disqualified Drivers – Return to Driving

  • General
  • Procedure – all cases
  • Disqualification for drink / drug driving – any period – police officers and police staff
  • Disqualification periods of 175 days or more for offences other than drink/drug driving – police officers
  • Disqualification periods of more than 28 days but less than 175 days for offences other than drink / drug driving – police officers.
  • Disqualification periods of 28 days or less – police officers
  • Procedures for Police Staff in all cases of disqualification for offences other than drink / drug driving
  • Appeal against (B)OCU Commander / Head of Branch decision

Section 3 - Police Collisions & Driving Incidents

  • Police vehicle collisions (Polcoll) definitions
  • Role of the RTPC OCU supervisor
  • Role of the Police Driving Standards Unit (PDSU)
  • Recording of details
  • Driving / driver incidents
  • Responsibility to inform supervisor
  • Fatal and potentially Polcoll
  • Polcoll on road or other public or private place (not MPS premises)
  • Groundings (speed humps)
  • Damage founds
  • Damage only collisions on MPS premises
  • Collision beyond the MPD involving and MPS vehicle / employee
  • Reporting of collisions involving non-MPS police officers / forces
  • Wrong fuelling
  • Kerbings
  • Fair, Wear & Tear (FWT)
  • Damage found at repair locations – not previously reported
  • Polcoll on motorways
  • SII examinations
  • Criminal damage to police vehicles
  • Relief of driver from driving duties
  • Reinstatement following relief from driving duties
  • Collision assessment 'to count' / 'not to count'
  • Points / Tariff table
  • Appeals process against decisions
  • Permanent removal from driving duties
  • Criminal offences
  • ACPO officers involved in collisions

Section 4 - Points on Police Driving Record

  • General
  • 6 or more points
  • 7 or more points
  • 10 or more points
  • Driving Interventions
  • Administration

Section 5 - Fixed or Mobile Camera Activations & Cancellation of NIPs

  • MPS legal requirements
  • Action required
  • Record of camera activation
  • Police Driving Standards Unit

Section 1

Driving Assessments

1.1 General

All 3-5 year assessments for trained police drivers will be undertaken by the HendonDrivingSchool. In the case of police staff Occupational Drivers, assessments will be conducted by Transport Services Department. Driving assessors can provide local familiarisations and Basic driving assessments. Drivers who are referred for assessments by the PDSU will be conducted by the driving school.

1.2 Assessors and verifiers

Driving Assessors are police officers or staff who have successfully completed a course in driving skills recognition and written feedback and have themselves been assessed by an independent verifier.

To be eligible to become a driving assessor, police officers must have been anAdvanced driver for at least 12 months.

Assessors who are currently suspended from police driving or are disqualified from driving by a court may not carry out their assessment role until the period of disqualification or suspension from driving duties is complete. They must then be re-assessed themselves by the MPSDrivingSchool before recommencing their Assessor role.

1.3 Police staffassessors and verifiers

Police staff assessors employed wholly within Transport Services will undertake driving assessments for occupational drivers.

Police staff Instructors employed at HendonDrivingSchool may perform the role of driving assessor anywhere within the MPS.

Other members of police staff, who have previously been verifiers or assessors while serving as police officers, may continue to carry out this function when they take up their new role provided they have retained the necessary skills.

Although not employed in an operational capacity, police staff drivers will retain their Advanced driving classification for the purposes of performing the driver assessment role. They will also be subject to the 3-5 year assessment rule themselves.

Each case of a police staff member wishing to continue in the role of driving assessor / verifier will be treated on its merits and a decision whether to authorise will be made by the respective (B)OCU Commander.

Advice from the Roads Policing Policy Unit / Driving Standards Unit may be sought.

1.4 Regular driving assessments & refresher training (every 3-5 years)

The following drivers will have regular re-assessment and refresher training of their driving to ensure they are performing to the required standards. This brings the MPS into line with nationally agreed policy that all trained police drivers should be re-assessed once every three to five years:

  • Police Officers i.e.Response and above
  • Advanced motorcyclists
  • MPS Special Constabulary (MSC) i.e.Response and above
  • Police staff who are trained drivers i.e. Response and above
  • Police staff who drive as members of the Special Constabulary i.e.Response and above

Re-assessments/refresher training are to be carried out by HendonDrivingSchool instructors. TPAC trained drivers will be assessed 2 years after their initial course and then every 2 years thereafter.

Once a driver has been assessed/refreshed within this period they will have a maximum period of a further five years before a further re-assessment/refresher must be conducted. This period is fixed and cannot be varied locally. Assessments/refresher training will be on a rolling five-year programme from the date of the last assessment.

If a trained driver does not complete a refresher within 5 years they are relieved from driving and must submit their permit to their line manager or SDM. They must either complete a refresher or they can apply to their line manager to be a BASIC driver. This is a permanent change and the driver will have to complete a full course to return to response driving duties or above.

Following a 3-5 yr assessment and refresher they will be authorised to continue at the current level until the next assessment (subject to driving incidents).

If the standard expected is not reached they may either be:

  • reclassified to a lower level
  • removed from driving

Successful completion of an MPS driving course is regarded as a successfully completed assessment, but this does not apply to new vehicle familiarisations. Those who have been assessed on transfer from another constabulary will be regarded as having been assessed for this purpose.

A 3-5 yr assessment/refresher covers all driving authorisations which a driver holds. As of the 1st April 2017 all response motorcycles will be required undertake separate motorcycle assessment/refresher training.

If a Response driver is down graded to a Basic driver, this will restrict their driving status to Basic until a further assessment/training is undertaken. The decision on the type of further training required will be the decision of the DrivingSchool.

In the event a Basic driver is also a Response police motorcyclist, they must complete a3-5 yr assessment/refresher training in order to continue to ride in response mode, Police officers cannot be Basic motorcyclists.

The following checks are part of the assessment/refresher:

  • A physical check of the officer's DVLA or equivalent driving licence to ensure it contains the relevant groups and that any endorsements or penalty points do not exceed the standard in the People -Standard Operating Procedure.
  • A check on the currency of the eyesight test. (Noted on the driving permit)

1.5 Assessing drivers rejoining or transferring to the MPS

See relevant section 'How to become a police driver' in People SOP

1.6 Assessing drivers trained by outside agencies or constabularies

See relevant section 'How to become a police driver' in People SOP

1.7 Assessing drivers involved in 3 blameworthy collisions within 1 year of training

Drivers having three blameworthy collisions (driving incidents) within the first year of gaining a driving classification - All driver levels, will be relieved until they have had a driver intervention from their Safe Driving Manager.

They must also successfully pass an assessment drive with an authorised assessor / verifier before being reinstated to driving.

  • Response & PSU drivers will be assessed by the driving school.
  • Basic drivers will be assessed by their (B)OCU authorised assessor/verifier.
  • Solo riders who are Basic car drivers will have to be assessed by DrivingSchool.

1.8 Assessing Drivers within any 12-month rolling period.

Drivers having three blameworthy collisions (driving incidents) within any 12-month rolling period may subject to a refresher assessment by the driving school. This will operate as follows:

  • Any authorised driver who has 3 blameworthy collisions within a 12-month period where a total of 6 or more points have been awarded will be re-instated to Basic (non-response) until they have been assessed by the Hendon Driving School. Arrangements for this will be made by the PDSU in consultation with the drivers SDM.
  • Any driver who has 3 blameworthy collisions within a 12-month period where less than 6 points have been awarded will be restricted to Basic (non-response) driving until they have had an intervention interview with their SDM. Following the intervention interview the SDM may require them to be re-assessed (any assessment will be conducted by the HendonDrivingSchool) prior to re-instatement of previous driving level.
  • Any Response Driver who within 12 months of completing their Response driving course, from 30 March 2015, has 3 blameworthy collisions where a total of 6 or more penalty points have been awarded will be re-instated to Basic (non response) until they have completed a further Full Response Car course.

1.9 Basic and Staff Driving Assessments

Basic and staff driving assessment will still be conducted locally by driving assessors.

The following checks are part of the assessment:

  • A physical check of the officer's DVLA or equivalent driving licence to ensure it contains the relevant groups and that any endorsements or penalty points do not exceed the standard in the People -Standard Operating Procedure.
  • A check on the currency of the eyesight test. (Noted on the driving permit)

Once the assessment has been conducted the assessment form must be attached to the driver’s driving record and their MetHR record updated. The assessor will then make the appropriate endorsement on the driver’s driving permit.

If a driver is unsuccessful at an assessment and no appeal is made the driver will be reclassified as a non driver. The driver’s Safe Driving Manager, supervisor and the duties office will be informed.

Unsuccessful candidates can appeal in writing to the local SDM, within 14 days. The SDM will arrange for a re-assessment where appropriate and the candidate will be notified of the result by way of a completed assessment sheet, which is retained on the candidate's driving record F499B.

If the driver is still dissatisfied they may appeal to an SDM from another (B)OCU, within 14 days. This SDM will, where relevant, consult with the local SDM and/or MPS Driving School/Transport Services. Where appropriate the candidate will be re-assessed by the external SDM. The candidate will be notified of the result by way of a completed assessment sheet, which is retained on the driver’s record.

If the driver is dissatisfied with the decision of the external SDM they may appeal to the Head of the MPS driving school.

Such an appeal will only be considered providing it is lodged, in writing, within 14 days of the notification from the external SDM.

Section 2

Disqualified Drivers - Return to Driving

2.1 General

MPS employees who have been disqualified by a court from driving are not automatically banned from ever driving MPS vehicles again, once their period of disqualification has ended.

The procedures and framework to be applied in every such case, must take into account relevant factors including: the seriousness of the offence for which disqualified, welfare issues, Health and Safety concerns, the needs of the service, the needs of the individual and the expectations and perception of the public.

2.2 Procedure – all cases

In all disqualification cases, the following will apply.

Any MPS driver who is disqualified from driving by a court must be officially relieved from police driving for the duration of the disqualification and until specifically re-authorised under these procedures. Officers & staff are required to have informed their B (OCU) Commander or Head of Branch of the court proceedings as per the Professional Standards Policy and SOPs.

The Safe Driving Manager (SDM) of the person’s (B)OCU must complete a Form 4674 and inform the Police Driving Standards Unit. The Form 4674 will be attached to the officers driving record held on their personal file, together with their driving permit, which must be surrendered.

Once the period of disqualification has ended, and following the return of their driving licence, the officer or staff member may apply for reinstatement to police driving. Each reinstatement process reflects the nature of the offence and the length of the disqualification.

These are:

  • Disqualification for drink / drug driving – any period
  • Disqualification periods of 175 days or more for offences other than drink / drug driving
  • Disqualification periods of more than 28 days but less than 175 days for offences other than drink / drug driving
  • Disqualification periods of 28 days or less
  • Procedures for Police Staff in all cases of disqualification for offences other than drink / drug driving

The SDM must inform the PDSU when a driver is reinstated to driving duties and at each relevant stage.

2.3 Disqualification for drink / drug driving – any period – police officers and police staff

The person wishing to drive again must submit a Form 728 asking to be allowed to drive MPS vehicles, through their (B)OCU SDM. This report will be accompanied by a Form 4675, completed by the SDM to assist the (B)OCU Commander in their decision making process. The SDM must check the person's driving licence & MPS driving permit to ensure they are correct and requirements current. A copy of the original report informing the B (OCU) Commander of the court proceedings is to be attached to the file.

The file is to be sent to the PDSU so that a check of the driver's MPS driving record may be made. The Inspector from the PDSU, on behalf of the Commander Roads Policing, will make comment on the request to be allowed to drive MPS vehicles again in relation to their police driving history.

The file will then be returned to the B (OCU) / Branch concerned. The (B)OCU Commander / Branch Head will decide, having taken into account all of the circumstances and carried out a risk assessment, whether to implement the persons reinstatement to MPS driving.

This should include contact with the person’s line manager for the period of the disqualification, seeking their views on whether there has been any evidence of the misuse of drink or drugs use, affecting their ability or attendance.

If not supported:

In any case where the relevant (B)OCU Commander / Branch Head decides not to reinstate the person as a MPS driver, a written explanation will be provided to the person concerned.

If supported:

Person referred to Occupational Health for an assessment of their health in relation to drink / drugs and physical and mental well-being. If OH state that there are no issues that should stop the officer from being reinstated to driving duties – move to next stage.

The person will initially be authorised as a Basic driver (regardless of classification prior to disqualification) and must pass the relevant assessment drive. They must remain a Basic for 4 months during which time the person’s performance and welfare should be monitored.

Previously a Response,Covert Advanced, Advanced and TPAC

If no Polcolls or other reported driving incidents occur during this 4 month period a standard 3-5 yr assessment/refresher course will be undertaken by Hendon driving school.

If any Polcolls or reported driving incidents occur during this period the SDM should assess whether there is a need for the 4-month period to be extended.

If successful in the 3-5 yr assessment/refresher drive – the driver is authorised to drive again at previous level.

2.4 Disqualification periods of 175 days or more for offences other than drink/drug driving – police officers.

The process will be the same as for drink / drug driving except no mandatory referral to Occupational Health is required (unless (B)OCU commander believes appropriate) and the periods of mandatory driving at Basic, Response, Covert Advanced, Advanced are set at 3 months.