Chain of Responsibility is a component of the Australia Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) which aims to promote safety and efficiency in the heavy vehicle industry. The legislation was expanded in 2018 to recognise that every party in the supply chain plays an important role in ensuring heavy vehicle compliance and safety.
Every party in the supply chain now shares a responsibility and is liable through indirect participation. This is why construction firms are required to maintain meticulous records to prove compliance; including route tracking, heavy vehicle compliance checklists, and much more. We understand CoR is intricate and hard to follow. So, here are the 3 Biggest Misconceptions About Chain Of Responsibility In Construction:
1 Builders are not responsible for Chain of Responsibility
Under the previous legislation, drivers were among the only liable parties. However, after the changes in 2018, heavy vehicle material transportation is now the responsibility of all parties, including builders.
Thanks to the Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) laws, employers are directly responsible for their employees health and safety, as well as other parties that could be affected by their work operations, such as pedestrians or contractors. This means that builders are directly liable for any damage or accidents caused when transporting materials in heavy vehicles.
2 Paper Records Are Helpful And Easy To Manage
The shift from “reasonable diligence” to “all due diligence” brought with it big changes in the way businesses take steps to ensure they meet their CoR obligations. In order to prove compliance with Chain of Responsibility, businesses need to monitor policies and procedures, coordinate employee awareness and training, manage contracts, maintain compliance documents and produce executive reports, among other tasks.
While old ways have always been an industry favourite, new obligations have made it almost impossible for managing employees to keep a clear record of all efforts to comply with manual systems. From pen and paper to digital solutions like spreadsheets, manually managing that amount of documentation is an arduous task. This means that businesses will have to adopt new management systems if they hope to keep up with compliance demands.
A Construction Logistics Management Software like Veyor helps businesses keep track of every step and decentralises the responsibility by allowing users operating in different parts of the supply chain to upload photos, track live vehicles and streamline information into clear reports of “all due diligence”.
3 Fines Are Cheap Or Don’t Exist
Before 2018, penalties were mostly limited to punishing drivers and directly involved employees. However, penalties were increased when the legislation changed. Now, in extreme cases, fines can go up to $300,000 for individuals and up to $3 million for businesses.
Once fined, the only way a company or individual can dispute it is if they can clearly prove all steps were taken in order to ensure the safety of everyone involved. Archives and records have to be gathered, organised and streamlined into professional reports which could take months with manual systems.
Chain of Responsibility in Construction is a hard nut to crack that requires businesses to take proactive measures to stay compliant. By avoiding common misconceptions and adopting new technologies like Veyor, businesses can ensure the safety of their employees, contractors and pedestrians, and avoid costly fines. Veyor’s user-friendly app helps construction companies stay compliant and, if needed, prove their due diligence without a hitch. Find out more about how Veyor can help you manage all your Chain of Responsibility obligations.
