According to a poll on eating habits carried out by the Fuelcard Company, 88% of drivers admitted to eating fast food and snacks such as crisps and sweets in their vehicles.
One in four drivers also confessed to breaking the law on a daily basis by eating when behind the wheel. Only 12% of fleet drivers claimed they never ate while driving.
Jakes de Kock, the Fuelcard Company’s sales and marketing director, said the survey findings were shocking for two reasons.
“Not only are drivers appearing to fall into a dangerous habit of regularly eating while driving, which can seriously affect reaction times and reduce awareness levels, but they have extremely unhealthy eating habits which is a real concern for business drivers who spend a large portion of their day on the road.”
The survey also revealed that only 12% of fleet drivers ate fruit or healthy snacks during their working day and just 5% ate home made packed lunches.
“Currently there is not enough emphasis on driver health and fitness among fleet companies and more needs to be done to promote wellbeing in the industry,” said de Kock. “Managers need to be more stringent when it comes to ensuring their drivers take regular breaks and clearer guidelines need to be established on diet and activity levels.”
